Shuichi In Wonderland
by Pinkshuchan
Summary: Inspired by Alice in Wonderland. Shuichi's ordinary life changes as soon as he finds himself trapped in Wonderland. With all the mad characters and the insane and confusing events happening, will he return home the same or will he change in some way?
1. Welcome to Wonderland

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hey everyone! My name is Pinkshuchan but you all can call me Shu. First of all I just want to say Happy New Year, and second I know that I'm still in the process of other stories but I just had the urge to begin this story to start off the New Year. Don't worry, if you've been reading the stories I'm currently working on along with this one then you will see that they will be updated along with this story. Now, I know that this might not be an original idea as I know that many of already worked on a Gravitation version of Alice in Wonderland. Still, I wanted to give it a try. Now, the disclaimer. I don't own Gravitation and its characters nor do I own the Alice in Wonderland stories. Gravitation belongs to Maki Murakami and Alice in Wonderland belongs to Lewis Carroll. Now without further adieu, here's the first chapter of Shuichi in Wonderland. Enjoy!**

Chapter 1

Welcome to Wonderland

Fantasy, dreams, wonder; these are things that we wish would be in the lives we live, that the magic from our favourite fairytales and folk stories would exist here in the real world. It would be a dream come true to live in a world with everything could talk and everything that didn't make sense here made sense in the fantasy world and vice versa. Little did one boy know that he would be the one to break the barrier between fantasy and reality.

It was an ordinary day for one Shuichi Shindo, lead singer of the band Bad Luck and quite a wonder to those who knew him. He was a young boy of 18 years with a slim petite body and a feminine heart shaped face with big violet eyes with long eyelashes under short messy pink hair. His voice was melodious even when he wasn't singing and his singing voice was already so beautiful. He was loved by many who wanted him to become theirs, but only one man was lucky to have someone like Shuichi by his side.

Eiri Yuki; loved by many women and considered to be the gorgeous and coldest man in the entire world. Unlike Shuichi who had more of a feminine beauty, Yuki's beauty was a type of beauty you would see of gorgeous men like Adonis or Apollo. He wasn't fat but he wasn't very skinny either. He had a bit of muscle for someone who spends most of his time on his laptop, writing stories filled with lots of romance, a thing he never thought truly existed until he met Shuichi. But what makes this romance novelist stand out from other men was his beautiful golden hair and golden eyes, making his skin as white as snow stand out. His appearance somewhat makes up for his sarcastic comments and dirty mouth.

Shuichi was spending another morning at home, sleeping peacefully with his beloved Yuki beside him until a familiar crashing sound woke him up. He felt it wasn't really necessary to have an alarm clock because of this because every time Shuichi sleeps in, his American manager, Claude 'K' Winchester, always storms into their apartment and wakes the pink haired boy up by threatening him with his prized magnum. It is then that Shuichi rushes around the apartment, getting himself ready and packing up for another day at work. Once he has finished getting himself ready, Yuki is already awake, glaring at K for damaging the wall to their bedroom… again, while their adopted son, Riku, comes in, rubbing his eyes upon being woken up by the crashing noise… again. Shuichi then gives the young boy a hug and a kiss on the top of his head and then gives his golden haired lover a kiss on the cheek, reminding him to take Riku to school at the usual time, as it was too early yet for him to get there. Yuki annoyingly agrees, as he's the one who always has to do it. And then Shuichi is out the door with K following after him.

"K, explain to me again why you always need to break down the wall and threaten to wake me up instead of just ringing the doorbell or at the very least call or send a text?" Shuichi asks as he's riding in K's car.

"Those methods don't work well enough for me," the American replied, "They aren't as effective as what I already do to wake you up."

The pink haired boy sighed. "You know, one of these days your crazy ways of 'managing' me is going to end up getting me killed. What would Bad Luck do then, huh?"

K just laughed. "There's nothing to worry about, you're pretty much near indestructible for a little guy. Besides, nothing I use should harm you or anyone even if they want to," He looked at the boy with a big grin, "Now, what do you say we hurry up and get to the building before you're late for sure!"

Before Shuichi could say anything to stop him, K stomped on the accelerator petal and caused them to drive faster through the streets of Tokyo. Shuichi screamed in fear and K just laughed maniacally. They eventually made it to NG, the place where they work to produce records and plans gigs for the bands. When they got there, Shuichi was tensely leaning against the seat, clinging to the sides, his eyes wide and his mouth open with his teeth clenched. It took him a while before his body managed to relax.

"I swear," he began, "I swear that I can't tell whether you're really trying to get me to work harder or just trying to give me a heart attack."

The American looked over at him, opening the door for him. "What are you talking about?" he asked, pretending to sound innocent, "I would never want to do anything to harm my star singer."

The pink haired boy glared at him. "That big crazy grin of yours says otherwise!" he snapped.

"Well now is not the time for accusations," said K, "Time to head to work!"

Shuichi and K walked away from the car and headed into the building. They walked past room after room until they reached the recording studio they were going to work in today. Everyone else was already there. Hiroshi Nakano or 'Hiro' was sitting in one of the chairs tuning his guitar and Suguru Fujisaki was looking through the sheet of music of what they were going to play. Shuichi walked in first with K following after them.

"Hey guys!" he spoke up, "I'm ready to play some music!"

Hiro looked up and smiled at the pink haired boy while Fujisaki just glared. "Mr. Shindo, why do you always come here later than you're supposed to?" he snapped, "You shouldn't always have to depend on Mr. K for everything. You should be able to make it to work on your own."

"That's what Yuki keeps saying!" Shuichi replied. Indeed, Yuki had been telling Shuichi to wake up, get ready, and head to work before K heads to their apartment and breaks down the wall… again. However, Shuichi made no effort whatsoever.

"I really think you should grow up Mr. Shindo!" Fujisaki continued, "You're always depending on everyone!"

This got Shuichi angry. "What do you mean?" he snapped back, "I'm already grown up! Who are you to say that I haven't grown up?"

Hiro got up and stood between them, trying to stop them from doing anything to hurt each other. "Come on guys, now is not the time for this!" he calmly spoke over them, "We need to finish this last song before the day is over. Besides, who knows what would happen if Mr. Seguchi comes in and sees you guys arguing."

Shuichi and Fujisaki glared at each other before the older of the two walked out the door past K only to almost bump into one nervous Sakano.

"Shindo!" he cried before almost bumping into him, "It's nice to see you. I wish I could stay here and chat but I'm really late! The President will be furious at me if I show up too late!" He then ran off, leaving Shuichi dumbfounded. He walked back into the studio and sat down in a chair.

"Mr. Sakano really is quite the nervous guy when it comes to Mr. Seguchi, isn't he?" he asked.

"Well, what do you expect Shu?" asked Hiro, "Mr. Seguchi _is_ our boss after all. He's very intimidating."

Shuichi nodded. "I guess, but what if it was Mrs. Mika that had control of NG?"

"That _would_ be even scarier," Fujisaki joined in, "Mr. Seguchi is one thing but Mika?" He shuddered. "She's scary when she wants to be."

Hiro just shrugged. "I don't really know her that much," he replied, "I've only heard some things about her. Does she act like a queen or something?"

"It sometimes seems like it," said Shuichi, "And Mr. Seguchi kinda acts like a king. If that's the case then I know who the jack is," He pretended to cough. "Cough… Fujisaki… cough!"

The youngest of the three caught that. "And just what do you mean by that?"

"Well your cousin is like a king and his wife is like a queen so it makes you a jack. You know, like in cards?"

Fujisaki was ready to do something until K shot out his magnum. "Alright you guys!" he called out, "Enough with the chit chat! We have some songs to work on!"

Bad Luck didn't say anything else outside of work during the rest of the time they were working on songs. They spent the rest of the days rehearsing and recording, something they did most of the time. When they were done, they went their separate ways. Hiro decided to hang a bit with Shuichi as he knew that something was in his mind. They went out to their favourite fast food place and ate as Hiro listened to Shuichi's problem.

"I'm thinking about what Fujisaki said this morning," Shuichi told him, "Maybe I do need to grow up. But maybe I don't. I don't know. What does it really mean to be grown up anyways? Is there a way to know if you're grown up or not?"

"It's true that you may act a little immature most of the time," said Hiro, "But you're always serious when it comes to the band and with your relationship with Mr. Yuki."

"But does that mean I'm really grown up? That doesn't sound like me."

"Then who are you? What kind of person sound like you?"

"I don't know," Shuichi lowered his head to the table. "It's hard to properly know myself."

Hiro placed his hand on Shuichi's head and ruffled the messy pink locks. "Well, I'm sure you'll figure it out soon enough."

After that talk, Shuichi went back home and help Riku get ready. It was the weekend and Riku was going to stay over at his friend Michael's house. Shuichi helped his adopted son pack pyjamas, toothbrush, sleeping bag, and anything he would need to hang out with his friend.

"Are you ready Riku?" he asked the young boy. Riku nodded. "Okay! Just make sure that you don't stay up too late at Michael's or you may be too tired to do anything in the morning."

"Okay Mama!" Riku replied softly.

Suddenly, the door slammed open and standing there was Michael Winchester running over to his friend. "Hey Riku!" he called to his friend cheerfully, "You ready?" Riku nodded slowly, still feeling a little shy around his hyperactive friend. Shuichi knelt down to his adopted son and told him to be on his best behaviour before giving him a goodbye kiss. As Michael and Riku left for the car, someone else walked in.

"Hi Shuichi!" a familiar childlike voice called out. Shuichi knew who that was.

Ryuichi Sakuma; lead singer of Shuichi's favourite band Nittle Grasper. His band separated for three years as he wanted to have a solo career in America. He then came back and reformed Nittle Grasper after hearing Shuichi. What Shuichi didn't realize until a little while after Yuki and Shuichi were given responsibility with Riku that Ryuichi had been in love with Shuichi since that time he heard Shuichi sing for the first time. He had been rejected a few times from Shuichi as the latter loved Yuki, even if he was a jerk most of the time. But that didn't stop Ryuichi from pursuing Shuichi, hoping that one of those days Yuki would anger him enough to break their relationship and make Shuichi run into his arms.

"Mr. Sakuma," Shuichi gasped, "What are you doing here?"

"I came to help K with picking your cute little son up," he replied, "I figured he would need the help considering he's my former manager and a friend of mine."

"Knowing K, I'm sure he could handle picking up Riku by himself," said Shuichi, "Why would you want to help him if he has it under control?"

Ryuichi began looking serious. "You're smarter than I thought you were," said Ryuichi, "The truth is I wanted to see you."

Shuichi sighed. "Mr. Sakuma, I like you but-!"

The older man placed his finger on Shuichi's lips before the latter could say another word. "Don't say another word! Your beauty is already too much to mesmerize me." But Ryuichi could continue, he was pulled away from Shuichi from someone Shuichi knew would be there in time.

Yuki stood there, holding Ryuichi's arm away from Shuichi, so far it almost hurt the older man's arm. "And just what the hell were you doing here and why it looked like you were trying to kiss him again?" he asked in a growl.

Ryuichi began looking childlike again. "What do you mean?" he asked innocently, "I wasn't doing anything of the sort," He pulled out his trusty pink stuffed rabbit Kumagoro. "Was I Kumagoro?" The rabbit shook his head. "Anyways, look at the time! I must be going now! Bye Shuichi!" And with that said, he left in a hurry as soon as Yuki let go of his arm.

Shuichi looked over at Yuki who was now heading back into his study and followed him in. "Yuki, why do you always do this every time Mr. Sakuma comes over or if I'm anywhere near him?"

"Because I don't trust him around you, that's why!" the golden haired male replied bluntly, "Every moment he's with you feels like another plot to try to get you to leave me."

The pink haired boy moved closer to his tall handsome lover. "Could it be you just want me to yourself?" he questioned with a smirk.

"So what if I do?"

Shuichi giggled. "Yuki, you don't need to be so concerned about me. I shall never leave you, no matter what happens." He leaned closer and gave Yuki a peck on the lips. Yuki pulled Shuichi closer and continued the kiss until it became passionate. They kissed until they were out of breath, in which then Shuichi moved so his lips were really close to Yuki's ear.

"You know," he continued, "Riku will be at K's until tomorrow morning. We can do whatever we want tonight."

Yuki pulled Shuichi away. "Sorry, but I need to finish this next book before the deadline in a few days." He walked to his desk and sat in his chair, continuing where he left off on his story.

Shuichi pulled over the stool he always sat on every time he wanted to watch what Yuki was writing and sat down beside the novelist. "It seems like you're always writing," he whined.

"Well, I have been behind in writing. Whose fault do you think that is, hum?"

"Hey! That was your own fault! You were the one that pulled that stunt that almost worried me to death!"

Yuki didn't respond to that. He just continued writing. Shuichi sighed and just sat there in silence. The only sound echoing in the entire room was the sound of the keyboard as Yuki's hands glided across and tapped against the keys. Shuichi, curious about what Yuki was typing, leaned sideways so he could see the words well on the screen. Something then caught Shuichi's eye. It was something he never seen before and made his curiosity grow. It said:

**Kiyomi watched the mysterious man walk away from where he saved her from the thugs that tried to kidnap her by almost killing them. There was nothing about him that stood out from any other man she knew except the fact that she believed he might have been as mad as a hatter.**

Mad as a hatter? What was that? Shuichi was curious about what that meant. "Yuki, what does 'mad as a hatter' mean?"

Yuki stopped typing and looked over at the pink haired male. "Why do you want to know that?"

"Well, it looked interesting," he replied, "I want to know what it means."

"Curiosity killed the cat Shuichi."

"What does it mean?"

Yuki sighed. "It's a fancy way of saying that someone is completely crazy. It came from an event that happened in the past."

"So you're calling the main hero of your story crazy?"

"Of course! There are a bunch of messed up people in the world. 'Mad as a hatter' describes how far crazy can go. It was most famously used by Lewis Carroll whose work perfectly described curiosity and insanity nicely. He used another way to describe insanity; 'mad as a March hare'. I think that perfectly describes that damn Sakuma."

That got Shuichi. "Now what do you mean by that?" he snapped, "Mr. Sakuma is not crazy! He's a god! Gods are not crazy!"

"Well that idiot is, so what?"

Shuichi stood up and smashed his fist against the desk. "He is not crazy! In fact, if there is anyone in this room that's really crazy it's you!"

It was Yuki's turn to stand up in anger. "What the hell did you just say?"

"That's right! You're crazy! In fact, you are as mad as a hatter! How do you like that?"

Shuichi instantly regretted it the moment he saw the golden haired male's face turn red with rage. "You made a bad choice!" he growled, "It's a good thing the little brat isn't here! He won't have to see me do this!" He dragged Shuichi by the collar, opened the door, and threw him out. Once Shuichi was out, Yuki slammed the door, leaving the pink haired boy to stand there.

Shuichi kept knocking on the door, constantly apologizing to Yuki and begging him to let him back in. After a while, he realized that it was no use and ended up heading to the park to clear his head.

The park; that was where Yuki and Shuichi first met. Their relationship at this park when Shuichi had his lyrics blown away by the wind and it was brought to Yuki in which he dismissed it as 'zero talent'. Shuichi wanted to prove him wrong and searched until he found him again. It was then that they began to fall in love. Shuichi never forgot that day, as many days with Yuki followed them. During that time, they've had fights like the one recently done, and there had been moments when they broke up. But no matter what happened, they always got back together.

Shuichi sat down at the nearest bench he could find and looked up at the clear night sky above him. Both Yuki and Fujisaki's words got to him. He was immature and he always let curiosity get a hold of him; what if those things were enough to get him into serious trouble? He sighed as he closed his eyes and let his eyes rest.

He was not able to keep them closed for long though.

He opened his eyes upon hearing humming. He turned his head to the sound of the humming and saw what looked like Sakano, but something wasn't right about him. It looked like Sakano, but the difference was that the Sakano in front of him had long white ears, bucked teeth and cotton ball tail. He almost looked like a white rabbit.

The bunny Sakano which we shall now call White Rabbit was walking and humming until he pulled out his pocket watch and stared at it in shock and fear. "My goodness!" he cried, "Is it that time already? I'm gonna be late! I'm late I'm late I'm late!" He then ran as if his life depended on it.

Shuichi stared at White Rabbit until his curiosity got the best of him and he began to follow him. He followed him to what looked like a rabbit hole big enough for a normal person to crawl in. He knew that was where the rabbit went. Shuichi got down to his knees and began to crawl in, thinking that it was just some regular, dark, rabbit hole, only bigger.

Boy was he wrong!

Once he got far enough, Shuichi slipped and began falling in a hole that was in front of him. He was falling a long distance and really fast. He was completely frightened, wondering if he was gonna die from how far and fast he was falling. Not even the rainbow changing colours that flashed as he fell made him feel better about it.

"Haha! Down we go!" a familiar voice laughed.

Shuichi would've jumped if he wasn't already in the air and he looked to where he heard the voice to see a bright green top hat twice as big as his own head. "Who…?"

The hat suddenly gained eyes and a mouth and began flying around him. "Look out below! Hahaha! Relax and enjoy the ride!"

"WHAT?" Shuichi cried in worry, "You've gotta be kidding me! I'm falling down a hole that may be bottomless at a fast pace and talking to a big talking hat! Wait a minute! Why is there a giant hat talking to me? Why is it even talking at all?"

"Just relax!" said the hat, "You'll reach the bottom soon enough!"

"As a pancake!"

"Not necessarily! I can see the way to the bottom now!" The hat flew down and disappeared in the darkness, causing a bright light to shine below Shuichi. Shuichi found that he was falling into that light. Who knows what would happen to him once he fell in. The moment he fell in, he was blinded by the light. By the time the light cleared up, he was already at the ground and he wasn't dead.

Shuichi opened his eyes to find himself surrounded by darkness. He was sitting there, trying to find his way around. He then caught a glimpse of light not that far away. It was small but he could see it. He crawled over to the light and brought his fingers close to it to see that it was actually a crack from a door. He opened the door only to see something completely bizarre.

On the other side of the door was a room surrounded by doors. Big ones, small ones, tall ones, stubby ones. There were doors of many different colours and of different patterns. There were even doors of different material. There were wooden doors and steel doors, doors were real and others that were only painted on. Shuichi crawled the rest of the way through the door into the room and looked around. He looked around the room to see where White Rabbit was. But the moment he went through the door, it disappeared on him, making that way impossible to go back through.

Suddenly, all the doors opened and thousands of different creatures began running around. Some looked like regular people but others looked like they were part animal. Some were of creatures he could easily name, others he could not. But they all had very familiar faces and they all looked like they came from an asylum. Shuichi feared that some of them could try to kill him or worse. He tried to run away but the moment he stood up and tried to make any type of movement with his feet, he tripped and fell face first into the tiled floor. At first he thought that his shoelaces possibly got tied up as a joke, but he realized that it didn't even feel like he was even wearing running shoes. He tried to stand up and managed to find a door made with a mirror only to stand there in utter shock. It wasn't just his shoes; his entire wardrobe that changed.

The shoes were not his usual running shoes. They were black 2 inch heels overtop of long white stockings that reached his thigh a little past the knee. A light blue dress with a skirt that barely ended at the thigh but nowhere close to the stockings and a white apron replaced his typical big sweater and baggy shorts. He wore long black fingerless fishnet gloves that reached below his elbows and a black ribbon was tied in his hair; completing the image he was given. Shuichi felt like he wanted to scream. He wished that this was nothing more than one really bad nightmare. He pinched himself in hope that he'll wake up in his bed with Yuki beside him.

But it wasn't to be. He was still in this crazy room.

He looked around at the different people there until he saw White Rabbit. He tried to follow after him but with the wardrobe choice he was randomly given and the amount of others there it was hard for him to reach him. By the time he managed to reach him it was too late. The rabbit was already through the door and it closed, locking itself as it did. The moment the door closed, everyone had disappeared and words formed on the door in front of him. It read:

**Welcome to Wonderland!**

**Pinkshuchan: Oh boy! Shuichi trapped in Wonderland! How will that turn out? Read and Review!**


	2. Tears and Birds

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hey everyone! Pinkshuchan here! I'm glad some of you like Shuichi in Wonderland so far. Last chapter, Shuichi ended up in Wonderland. What will he do? Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 2

Tears and Birds

Shuichi sat there in front of the locked door the White Rabbit went through. He knew he had done it now. He had done many stupid things before but following a giant rabbit that looked like Sakano to a hall filled with doors and called itself 'Wonderland' takes the cake. He was here and he followed that rabbit to where he was going. Now he needed to find a way back home. He stood up and tried to walk over to every single door in the hall in the black heels on his feet. But he found that every door was locked.

That is, except for one.

Shuichi found a door that wasn't locked only to find a smaller door behind. He stared at it, wondering why there was a door behind a door. He opened the smaller door only to have an even smaller door behind it. Every time he opened a door, a door smaller than that would be behind it. It wasn't until he reached a door big enough for a cat where the pattern changed. When he tried to open it, he found that it was locked like the other doors. He huffed and sat down.

"What the hell kind of place is this?" he asked to no one, "Why is it there's no way out of this place? All the doors are locked. I may be trapped here for the rest of my life."

But then, before Shuichi could even blink, a glass table appeared before him. He stood up and tried to walk to the table to see that there was a tiny key there. Shuichi wondered what kind of lock this key would fit in. It was obviously too small for any of the doors. That was, except for the small door. He had a theory; he needed to see if it would work. He went over to the door and put the key in the lock.

The door unlocked.

Shuichi opened the door and looked inside. It looked like a beautiful garden filled with tall bushes with roses in the form of shapes he had seen before. He recognized one of them to be a heart. He wondered if that place would help him get home. He tried to go through, but the door was too small for him. After all, he was twice the size of the door. He closed the door and locked it before sitting in front of it again. He began to think about how he was going to get home now.

But then, he saw a bottle on the table. He was not sure where it came from. He was sure that it wasn't there before. He went over to the table, put the key down, and picked up the bottle. He looked at it. It was a crystal bottle with a piece of tape as a label with only two words on there. It read:

**Drink me.**

Shuichi was curious as to why a bottle would say anything like that. But he didn't trust it. He knew he was naïve but even _he_ knew nothing good would come out of it. He glared at the bottle.

"Why should I drink you?" he asked the bottle, "There's most likely a catch."

The words on the label mysteriously changed right in front of his eyes. It read:

**There's no catch.**

Shuichi couldn't trust it. "What makes you think you can make me drink you anyway?" he continued, "I'm not even thirsty."

It didn't seem like the label was going to take no for an answer. Instead, the words on the label changed again. This time, it read:

**JUST DRINK ME ALREADY YOU DAMN BITCH!**

"Alright! Alright!" Shuichi cried, "I'll drink you!" He opened the bottle and took a sip from it before putting it back down at the table. He admitted that it was a good drink. It tasted like strawberries, chocolate, banana, apple, and peppermint. He then stood there for a bit, questioning why the bottle was desperate for him to drink it. He closed his eyes and pondered with his arms crossed. After standing there for a bit, he leaned back to lean on the table only to fall to the ground. He hoped that the table didn't decide to disappear on him. But when he opened his eyes, he saw that the table didn't really disappear but instead it grew. Shuichi stood up and looked up at it. How did it grow so big? But then he looked down at himself and realized something.

It wasn't the table that grew but Shuichi who had shrunk.

Shuichi couldn't believe it. He never heard of a person shrinking before. It was a good thing his clothes shrunk with him, even if he found it silly as to why he was wearing it, but still. How did he shrink? But then he remembered that he drank the strange drink. That had to be what made him shrink. He then realized something else. He was big enough to fit through that door now. He walked over to the door the best he could with the heels still on his feet and tried to open the door. But no matter what, the door wouldn't open. He didn't know what was going on. He was sure he unlocked it. But then he locked it after realizing he couldn't go through the door in the size he was before he drank the bottle and put the key… on the table!

He mentally kicked himself for that. Then again, how was he to know he was going to shrink to around the size of a mouse? This place was playing tricks on him and he didn't like it. He looked around the room with a glare. He hated that just a few seconds ago this room didn't look as big to him. Now, it looked like he was in a giant museum.

"Oh yeah, very funny!" he yelled really loud even though there was no one else in the room besides him, "You must think it's a riot to see me struggle through this little funhouse which has now become a giant funhouse for me. You like making all these people that look like people I know walk around in front of me in crazy costumes and have all these doors that confuse me. You like seeing me struggle so much trying to find a door that's unlocked and when I do I'm not the proper size. I then end up the perfect size and the door is locked on me again. Worst of all, I had to deal with all of this while wearing a short dress and heels. Sure, I've crossdressed before, but only to impress Yuki, and I certainly never wore heels. You think this is really funny don't you? Well guess what; I'M NOT LAUGHING!"

He sat back down once again. If all these things were happening to him from just coming there, who knows what else it would do to him later on. He was even beginning to wonder if he'll ever get home. He sat there until something caught his eye. Sitting beside him was a glass box with golden rims and something inside. He opened it to see a cupcake with the words:

**Eat me.**

"Not another one!" Shuichi groaned to himself, "Will you at least tell me if I'll change sizes this time?"

**Eat me and find out.**

The pink haired boy looked disgusted. "That sounds perverted! I shouldn't eat a cake that speaks to me, even if it speaks with words made of icing on top of it!"

**You wanna get out of this room or not?**

Shuichi knew that he had no choice but to give in to the cake's demands and eat it. After all, it could either make him big of make him small. If he grows bigger, then he can get the key. If he becomes smaller, he'll be able to squeeze through the door. He picked it up and took a bite then put it back in the box. He waited for a bit to see some sort of change in his size, but nothing. He sighed. What would happen now?

Suddenly, Shuichi began to grow. He grew and grew until his head reached the ceiling. He noticed that he grew so big to the point where he filled the entire room. People would have to climb on top of him to get to their destination. He didn't know what he was going to do.

But then one of the doors opened and the White Rabbit muttered about something while holding a pair of gloves and a fan. Shuichi decided to talk to him. Maybe he would know how to get him back to a proper size.

"Excuse me!" Shuichi cried out, only to have the Sakano look-a-like with rabbit features to run away, dropping his fan and gloves. This didn't help Shuichi at all. In fact, it was the complete opposite; it was completely unhelpful. Shuichi began to feel a little depressed. Well, a little depressed might be an understatement. Shuichi began feeling like it was truly going to be impossible for him to get home. He began to cry, thinking of what would happen to him now that he was a giant and unable to get home. He would never leave the room let alone able to find his way home. He would never see his home again, his family and friends, his little Riku, and of course, he would never be able to see Yuki again. That was probably what made him cry the hardest.

His tears always looked like waterfalls when he cried, but with the size he was, they _had_ become waterfalls. He cried and cried, causing the hall to flood, and it didn't help that he was burning up from how little cool air there was. He then felt the fan the White Rabbit dropped in his hands, picked it up, opened it, and fanned himself to cool himself down.

But it did more than cool him down.

The more he fanned himself, the more he began to shrink. By the time Shuichi realized what he was doing, he was already back to the size of a mouse, being forced to swim in his own tears. One of the doors opened and the ocean of tears flowed through the door, taking Shuichi with it.

The river of tears took Shuichi to some sort of beach, or was it once a desert? Either way, it was a place filled with lots of sand before Shuichi's tears reached it. He finally managed to drift to shore only to see the most peculiar thing. Three people dressed in bird costumes were running around in circles. Shuichi got up and headed towards them to take a closer look. Now that he saw them, he noticed that minus the feathers and the beaks, they looked like the band ASK. Even if they didn't really get along when they were both in the music business, he thought maybe they would help him this time. He tried to get their attention.

"Excuse me!" he called out to them, "Could you possibly tell me how to get out of here?"

The three men in bird costumes stopped what they were doing and stared at him. He looked closer to their appearances. One of them, whom he remembered his name to be Ken was dressed in what looked like a parrot costume. The second one, who he remembered was named Maa-kun, was dressed like what looked like an eagle. The leader, who Shuichi didn't remember the name of, was dressed like an unusual bird he had never seen before. They stared at him in silence until the unusual bird spoke up.

"A way out?" he asked, "There's only one way for anyone to find a way out; the Caucus Race."

Shuichi was confused. "What's the Caucus Race?"

The men dressed as birds gasped before their stares became glares. "What's the Caucus Race?" the leader replied, "You don't know what the Caucus Race is?" He looked over at the other two. "Hey Lory, Eaglet, are you hearing this? This stupid bitch doesn't know what the Caucus Race is!"

"We heard you Dodo," the parrot looking one, Lory, replied, "Stupid bitch!" They all began to laugh.

Shuichi was not pleased with what they called him. "Hey!" he yelled out, "Just because I don't know what the Caucus Race is doesn't mean that I'm stupid."

"Ah, but it does," said Eaglet, "Everyone in Wonderland knows what the Caucus Race is."

The pink haired male crossed his arms. "Okay, since you seem like the experts on it, what is it?"

The birds laughed harder. "How stupid are you?" Dodo wailed, "The Caucus Race is a race. Duh!" They began laughing so hard, they were rolling on the ground.

"I can tell it's a race!" Shuichi screamed at them, "But what the hell kind of race is it?"

The birds stood back up and wiped their eyes from tears that welled up while they were laughing. "The Caucus Race is a race that helps you dry up whenever you get soaked like with what happened a few seconds ago. We'll show you!"

The birds got into their positions and asked for Shuichi to do the countdown. Once Shuichi had finished, he expected that the birds would run or fly and go a long distance. However, what really happened was that they began running in circles around Shuichi. Round and round they ran around him, making him feel a little dizzy. Was _this_ the great Caucus Race they made fun of him for not knowing? He was really starting to become furious with these crazy birds.

"_This_ is the Caucus Race?" he asked them, "Well then if you ask me, _it_ has to be the most stupidest thing I've ever seen!"

The birds stopped running the Caucus Race and glared at him. Shuichi was beginning to feel that he might've gotten himself in trouble. The birds surrounded him to the point where he couldn't run.

"You hear that?" Dodo asked his bird companions, "This stupid bitch thinks the Caucus Race is stupid. Well then, we can show this bitch what else we love to do besides run the Caucus Race."

And he was right. The birds grabbed hold of him and held him tight. He recognized the looks in their eyes. They were the looks of hunger and not for food. He struggled to break free from their grasp but it was no use. Pretty soon, they would have control of him.

Suddenly, something was thrown at the birds, causing them to let go of Shuichi. They all looked at the direction of whatever was thrown in their direction to see a silhouette in front of them. It appeared to be a man around 6'1 wearing a white buttoned up shirt buttoned halfway, exposing his well toned chest with a rectangular shaped pendant that looked like a bronze card with the ace of hearts on it with a dirty brown tailcoat, white gloves, brown dress pants to match the tailcoat, and black tap shoes. But what caught Shuichi's attention was the giant green top hat on his head. It looked exactly like the top hat that fell with him in the rabbit hole but without a face. The birds glared at the mysterious stranger.

"Hey!" Dodo yelled at him, "What's the big idea huh? Have people not told you that it's rude to disrupt people, especially if you're not involved?"

The mysterious stranger smirked. "No, I haven't," he replied with a deep soft chilling whisper, "You could say that I'm too _mad_ for anyone to tell me such a thing."

The birds were starting to get pissed with the stranger's attitude. "We three are going to kick your ass!" Lory snapped.

The stranger brought his hand in front of them and wagged his index finger. "You three are clearly mistaken. It will not be you three that will be kicking my ass, but it will be _me_ kicking _your_ ass. Learn your terms correctly, birdbrains!"

That offended the birds the same way calling Shuichi a 'stupid bitch' offended Shuichi. "THAT'S IT! HERE WE COME!"

All three birds rushed at the stranger with a lot of speed and force, but the stranger was faster than them. Not only that, he appeared to be tap dancing as he dodged them, which was strange because there were tapping sounds when he danced yet he was dancing on sand. The birds looked like they took the tap dancing as a taunt and began charging at him again. From the way things looked, it seemed like the stranger had the upper hand. No matter what, the birds couldn't lay a feather on him. Eventually, the stranger yawned as he covered his mouth, looking like he was tired of the whole thing, and when the birds came charging at him once last time, he grabbed their necks and swung them around before throwing them at a great distance far away from where they were.

Shuichi stared at the stranger. Looking at him, it didn't seem like the latter was human. Who was he? But Shuichi was too scared to find out. He got up and tried to run as fast as he could. Yet he kept tripping due to the heels. He could hear the stranger muttering to himself behind him.

"Dammit," he spoke to himself, "My gloves are covered with blood again. I don't understand why they would call it a 'clean fight' and yet people still end up getting dirty," The stranger then noticed Shuichi trying to get up. "Hey, what are you doing?"

Shuichi began to worry. He worried that if the stranger catches him he might end up like the birds. He got up and tried running again only to end falling back down again. He kept this pattern up until he felt blood stained gloves grab his hand and pull him up and close to him. Shuichi ended up looking up at the stranger and his eyes widened with what he saw.

The stranger that fought off the birds looked exactly like Yuki.

The Yuki look-a-like also stared at Shuichi as if he looked familiar to him. Once he noticed something, he let Shuichi go, which luckily the latter was able to keep standing just fine.

"I'm really sorry," he apologized, "You looked like someone I know. Well, slightly."

Shuichi just stared at him. He knew that this was definitely not Yuki, even if he looked like him. "T-Thank you… you know… for helping me against those birds."

The Yuki look-a-like just tipped his hat slightly to him before disappearing in thin air. Shuichi moved forward to try to touch him but there was nothing but air in front of him. He didn't know who that guy was and why he looked like Yuki, but despite his appearance Shuichi knew he didn't want to meet him again. He continued onward, hoping to find his way home. Little did he know that there was more to come here in Wonderland which may change him forever.

**Pinkshuchan: Well, that was quite a chapter. There are already so many characters in Wonderland Shuichi met that look like someone from his world. Who else may he meet? Read and Review!**


	3. A Big Problem

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hey, it's Pinkshuchan! Last chapter of Shuichi in Wonderland, Shuichi escaped the hallway full of doors and met the birds and a Yuki look-a-like. What more is he going to encounter while in Wonderland? Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 3

A Big Problem

Shuichi managed to find a way out of the strange desert beach place and found himself in a green lush forest. The more he walked, the more he noticed that this place was definitely not Tokyo. Shuichi also began to get used to walking in heels and he was able to keep walking without having to keep tripping because of them. He walked through the forest until he found what looked like a tiny house with brick walls and a straw roof with a beautiful garden surrounding it. He wondered who would live in a place like this. Just as he reached the door, he saw the White Rabbit, complaining about something.

"Aww dammit!" he cursed, "My day is not going so well. I end running late, I lose one of my fans and a pair of my gloves, I can't find Mary-Ann, and I tripped and broke my glasses. I'm going to have to go get my glasses repaired, but I need to get my extra pair of gloves and fan and find Mary-Ann. What am I going to do?"

It seemed like the White Rabbit was in desperate need of something. Shuichi decided to go see him and see what the matter was. He walked over to the Sakano look-a-like and stood in front of him.

"Excuse me, Mr. Rabbit?" he tried to get the rabbit's attention, "Is there anything bothering you?"

The White Rabbit looked up at the pink haired boy and squinted his eyes to get a good view of the person in front of him. He jumped up and stood in front of the boy with a strange look on his face, at least, it was a look Shuichi had never seen on Sakano.

"There you are, Mary-Ann!" the rabbit cried, "What the hell were you doing disappearing like that when you were desperately needed? Enough about that now! I need you to go fetch my extra pair of gloves and fan while I go get my glasses fixed." Before Shuichi could say anything, the rabbit ran off, although he did keep bumping into stuff.

He stood there confused. "What just happened?" he asked to no one in particular. However, he didn't expect that he would get a reply.

"He mistook you for his housemaid Mary-Ann," replied a female voice, "With his glasses broken, he can't see a damn thing properly so he couldn't see at your face and see you as someone else. However, even though he couldn't see your face, with those clothes of yours I can see why he would mistake you for a housemaid."

Shuichi looked around. "Who said that?" he called out.

"Just your typical gardener!" said the voice which sounded closer to the pink haired boy. Shuichi turned around to see what looked like a human sized guinea pig wearing a white t-shirt and blue overalls with a straw hat. But what startled him was the fact that the guinea pig's face looked exactly like the face of the scary female executive from XMR, Reiji. Shuichi had the urge to hide, but then he remembered that the people here, even though they look like people he knew, they weren't really the people he knew, so he relaxed.

"Anyways, you'll need to have to excuse my boss, Mr. Rabbit," she continued, "He's been really stressed recently so he gets onto things too hastily," She held out his hand for him. "By the way, allow me to introduce myself. I'm Pat, the head gardener here at the White Rabbit's house."

Shuichi returned the introduction by taking her hand and shaking it. "Nice to meet you Pat," he replied, "I'm Shuichi."

Pat nodded and they stopped shaking hands. "But yeah, Mr. Rabbit has been feeling really stressed, especially since he serves the king and queen of Wonderland. They've been putting him on edge lately, what with making sure that nothing is out of places for the queen's banquets, make sure the invitations are sent right, and get people together, especially to make sure the soldiers are ready to continue the search for the missing princess."

This got Shuichi confused. "Princess? What princess?"

"You don't know?" the guinea pig gardener gasped, "The daughter of the king and queen. The most beautiful girl in all of Wonderland. It makes me jealous."

"Why? What does she look like?"

Pat shrugged. "I don't know. I've never seen what she looks like."

Shuichi raised an eyebrow. "Then how do you know if she is the most beautiful girl in Wonderland if you've never seen her before?"

"Well, aren't all princesses supposed to be beautiful?"

"Well, in the stereotypical way, yes but-!"

But Pat continued on. "Besides, her parents are both very beautiful so it would be a surprise if she didn't inherit any of their beauty. But then, she wouldn't really be their daughter now would she? But the poor girl. It is a shame that she was kidnapped."

"Kidnapped?" Shuichi asked, "By who?"

"By the Mad Hatter of course!"

"The Mad Hatter?"

"The sneakiest man in all of Wonderland. He acts all gentleman like but he's a liar and a cheat! He's a dangerous man! It wouldn't be safe if you bump into him. Anyways, as long as you're here you can do what Mr. Rabbit told you to do and get his extra fan and gloves. Who knows how long Mary-Ann will take to get back."

Shuichi didn't feel sure about it. "You sure? I mean I'm a complete stranger here. As it's been said before, it's not wise to allow complete strangers into your home unless their job needs them to be in there."

Pat began pushing Shuichi into the house. "Well as of this moment, it's your job to get his fan and gloves so get to it! AND I MEAN NOW!"

Without any warning, Shuichi flew into the house and landed on the couch. He knew he couldn't talk his way out of it, so he decided to at least help and find the fan and gloves in the house. He began looking around the entire house for any sign of the fan and gloves. He eventually reached where he guessed was the White Rabbit's bedroom. This had to be the perfect place for him to put his fan and gloves. He searched around, noticing that the entire house was really hot. Didn't the rabbit have any air conditioning in his house? Shuichi knew that if he didn't get anything to cool him down soon, he would die from all the heat.

Suddenly, he saw what looked like a bottle on the bedside table. It looked like a bottle with a drink in it. Desperate for the drink to cool himself down, he took it, opened it, and took a sip before closing it and putting it back on the bedside table. He then continued searching for the fan and gloves, but not before realizing something coming over him.

Slowly but surely, Shuichi began growing and growing until he was too big for the house. His arms and his one leg ended up going through the windows and doors that were close to him while the other leg was stuck in a very uncomfortable position.

He groaned. "I'm a giant again? But how-!" He then remembered the bottle he drank before he became a giant and looked closer at it. It was another of those bottles that said 'Drink me!'

"Dammit!" he continued, "Not you again! Well, it couldn't get worse, right?"

He just _had_ to ask that question. Right after he said that, he heard a scream. Shuichi wasn't sure who it was that screamed. But he found a window close by, opened it and looked closely. The White Rabbit had returned with his glasses repaired only to see a giant monster inside his house. He began to panic and ran around the place until he bumped into what looked like Pat. Shuichi listened to what was going on.

"Pat, how did this happen?" he asked the guinea pig gardener, "How did that giant monster get into my house in the first place?"

"I don't know sir," she replied truthfully, "I was just in the garden until I heard you crying about it. Maybe we can smoke it out sir."

"Well then, go smoke him out!"

The guinea pig gardener just stared at him. "Mr. Rabbit, you're not suggesting a girl like me doing something as dangerous as this, are you?"

"Who else? It's not like I'm going to do it! I'm needed alive for the Queen of Hearts," He shuddered. "Who know how bad she gets if nothing goes her way."

"Don't worry sir," Pat assured him, "I have someone that can do it! Bill! Get over here!"

A lizard that looked like Reiji's assistant, Bill, ran over to her with a ladder. "You call Miss Pat?"

"Use your ladder to get to the roof and go down the chimney!" she replied as she pointed at the brick chimney, "There's something in the house that we can't get out and all the doors are blocked if you don't already notice."

He saluted her. "Yes Miss Pat!" He carried his ladder to the side of the house and began climbing up until he reached the roof. Even though the roof was made of straw, it didn't break easily. Bill managed to stand on the roof and walk over to the chimney, climbing in. Shuichi in desperation with his leg in an uncomfortable position, moved it to the chimney and accidentally kicked Bill out of the chimney into the sky. The White Rabbit and Pat watched as Bill disappeared in the sky.

"There goes Bill!" Pat exclaimed as they watched him fly away.

Shuichi looked through the window and watched Bill fly away because of him. "Sorry Bill!" he cried.

But even though Bill failed to get Shuichi out, the White Rabbit and Pat weren't going to give up on getting rid of the 'monster'. They picked up pebbles that were close to them and began throwing them at the house and at Shuichi. Shuichi tried to tell them to stop but some of the pebbles ended up going in his mouth. Out of reflex, he swallowed the pebbles, as they didn't taste all that bad. In fact, they tasted like tiny cakes. But the pebbles wouldn't stop.

Suddenly, Shuichi felt himself getting smaller and smaller, which he was. He shrunk and shrunk until he was twice as small as he was before. He hurried out of the room and went out the door, which was hard considering how small he had become. He would guess that he would be around 3" tall. Pat and the White Rabbit continued throwing pebbles until a face Shuichi definitely recognized walked over to them.

It was Shuichi's little sister Maiko dressed in a light green dress and a white apron with white stockings and black Mary Jane shoes. She tapped on their shoulders. "Mr. Rabbit, Pat, what are you both doing to the house?"

They looked over at her and seemed to recognize her as well. "Mary-Ann!" the White Rabbit cried, "Thank goodness you weren't in the house! There's a terrible giant monster inside."

She looked at them with confusion. "A monster?" she asked in a non believing tone, "You both must be imagining things." She then walked inside the house, despite her employer and fellow worker telling her not to. She then came out with a fan and a pair of gloves in her hands.

"See? There was no monster!" she continued, "I'm perfectly fine! And I noticed you were without your fan and your pair of gloves Mr. Rabbit!" She handed the fan and gloves over to him. Both the rabbit and the guinea pig were dumbfounded.

"Thank you Mary-Ann!" the White Rabbit replied before he looked at his pocket watch and began to panic, "Well, I must be going. I'm really late as it is and if I don't make it there soon, the queen will have my head!" With that said, he ran off. Shuichi began following him, even though he was smaller. He was determined to find his way back home and he had a feeling that the rabbit might help him. He just hoped he wouldn't bump into the 'Mad Hatter' character Pat warned him about.

**Pinkshuchan: More and more people Shuichi recognizes from his home. Some enjoyable, some not. I'm just gonna say ahead of time that all Gravitation characters will have a Wonderland counterpart. And when I mean all, I mean **_**ALL**_**. Read and Review!**


	4. The Caterpillar

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hey everyone! It's Pinkshuchan! Shuichi met a few more characters last chapter. Who else will he meet? Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 4

The Caterpillar

On and on he ran trying to catch up to the White Rabbit, but with the size he was reduced to and the heels placed onto his feet, Shuichi just couldn't pull through. Upon realizing that he couldn't keep up with him in his current condition and finding that he was now lost, he stopped running and looked around. He was definitely lost, especially since he didn't know his way around this entire world let alone this forest. At least, it looked like a forest. But with the size he had become, it might not be a forest yet it looked like one in the perspective he was in now.

He sat down, trying to think of what he was going to do. He was definitely tired about having to wear heels to get everywhere. He wasn't sure how girls do it. He brought his left leg close to him and tried pulling the heel off his feet. But no matter how much he tried, the shoe wouldn't come off. He didn't understand why. The shoes didn't feel tight on his feet yet it felt like they were glued to his feet. He wondered if the shoes were glued to the stockings so he decided to try to pull those off as well, but like the shoes, no matter how much he tried to pull the stockings off they just wouldn't come off. This made him wonder; if the shoes and stockings can't come off does that mean…?

He started pulling on his clothes. He needed to know if the dress was stuck on him like the heels and stockings. And indeed, they were stuck on him the same way as the others. Did this mean that they would never come off? That he would be wearing this outfit forever?

He groaned in frustration. This place was annoying and confusing him to no end. "What do I do now?" he asked himself.

"You should go see the caterpillar," voices called out to him, "The caterpillar can solve all your troubles."

Shuichi jumped to the voices and began looking around. "Who said that?" he called out to the voices, "And who is 'the caterpillar'?"

"The caterpillar is the wisest in all of Wonderland," they replied, "His advice can help anyone with anything!"

If this caterpillar could do all that then Shuichi could ask him for a way out of this insane theme park. "Where can I find him?"

Suddenly, the leaves of what looked like giant flowers began pointing in the same direction. "Follow the path until you reach a place filled with mushrooms. You'll find him there doing things someone as wise as him does during his spare time."

Shuichi looked at the path then looked around him and gave a slight bow. "Thank you!" He then followed the path, heading to where he heard the caterpillar was supposed to be.

He walked the path until he heard a faint yet very familiar sound, a sound he had heard many times before. Where had he heard it before? Why was it so familiar? He was sure he heard this sound a lot within his life. He listened and noticed that the sound was coming in the direction of the path. He followed it until he reached the place the voices told him about. The sound was clearer here and listening carefully, Shuichi recognized where he heard that sound from.

That sound was the sound of an acoustic guitar.

Although the guitar sounded closer and he was at the place he was supposed to be, he couldn't see anyone. Was this caterpillar really here? If not then this place added another annoyance to the pink haired male. All he wanted was to get home to Yuki, was that too much to ask?

"Who are you?" a voice crept from behind Shuichi.

The latter jumped at the sudden voice and turned around, only to recognize another familiar face. It was Hiro, but he didn't look exactly like Hiro. The Hiro in front of him looked a little similar to the Hiro he knew from the neck up but he had antennae on the top of his head. But everything from the neck down was not only not Hiro but not even human. He looked like he was wearing something blue that covered his entire body but from halfway on his shoulders to his navel looked like it was human skin as it was the same colour of his face. What really spooked Shuichi was the fact that he did have arms even if they were blue with white gloved hands, but the fact that he had no feet and just had a long body.

The Hiro look-a-like noticed Shuichi's reaction and gave him a calmer look. "I'm really sorry about that," he apologized, "I didn't mean to startle you. But you didn't answer my question; who are you?"

The pink haired boy regained his composure before speaking up. "I don't mean to be rude," he spoke up, "But would you mind telling me who you are first?"

"But of course," he replied, "I am the wisest of all of Wonderland, said to be able to guide those lost and confused. I am a wise caterpillar, but if you need something to call me by, you can call me Caterpillar."

"It's nice to meet you Caterpillar. I'm Shuichi!"

Caterpillar nodded. "Yes, that is what you are called, but who are you?"

Apparently name wasn't going to please the caterpillar, so Shuichi decided something else. "I'm the lead singer of a band called Bad Luck. It's really popular all across Japan."

Caterpillar just stared at him. "Just because you know the things you know doesn't mean I know the things you know. Once more, who are you?"

That was it! Shuichi had enough. This caterpillar looked like his friend but he wasn't as useful when it came to advice. "I guess I'm just wasting my time here," he snapped, "I came here because I needed help and I thought you could help me with my problems, but if all you want is to ask who I am when even _I_ don't know who I am then I should just leave. Good bye!" Without another word, Shuichi turned and began to walk away until he heard Caterpillar call back to him.

"Wait!" he called out to the pink haired male, "Please come back! I have something very important to tell you!"

Shuichi wasn't sure if he should go back and listen to what the caterpillar had to say or to go back and listen to what he wanted to say. A debate ran through his head as he tried to decide what to do about the caterpillar. In the end, Shuichi's curiosity got the better of him and sighed before walking back to the caterpillar.

"What is it you want to tell me?" he asked, sounding a little calmer yet still a little angry.

Caterpillar looked back at him before saying what he needed to say. "Control your temper."

He just couldn't believe it. "That's it?" Shuichi snapped once again, "You made me come back here just to say that?"

"No," Caterpillar replied calmly, "I'm also curious with your last statement. You said that you came here because you needed my help and you mentioned that you didn't know who you really were other than your name. So then please, tell me what your troubles are and I'm sure I might be able to help you."

Shuichi looked around and saw there was a mushroom that looked like he could sit on it. He looked back at the caterpillar. "Is it alright if I sit down on this?"

The caterpillar nodded. "Of course! Please make yourself comfortable!" He didn't waste time and just sat down, facing the caterpillar, ready to tell him his troubles.

"I always thought I knew who I was," he began, "I mean, when I was a little kid, I knew that I was someone that loved to sing. The adrenaline when I sang up on stage in front of so many people excited me. I wanted to be famous. I wanted to sing in front of thousands of people. As I grew up, I started wondering who I was, especially since I came here to this crazy place. I'm actually not from this place. I come from a place called Tokyo, a city inside Japan, and I ended up here in this weird world by a white rabbit who-!"

"A white rabbit?" that brought the caterpillar out of his calm state, "Always the white rabbit! That means you came from the Otherworld! Haven't seen one before."

This got Shuichi's attention. "You mean I'm not the only one that ended up here?"

"Well those from the Otherworld before you have already returned to the Otherworld but there have been other Otherworlders that ended up here in Wonderland. But seriously, it's always the white rabbits that always get their attention. Why isn't it ever the black cats?"

"So you know how I can escape from this place right?"

"Wrong!"

"Wrong?"

"Wrong! I know that there have been Otherworlders that had been here before and I know that they have managed to return to the Otherworld but I don't know how they managed to get back. I'm really sorry. But anyways, that's not your only problem right? Please continue. What else do you need help with?"

Shuichi was a bit disappointed that Caterpillar didn't know a way for him to get back home to Tokyo, but he had a deep feeling that he might help with his other problems. "Well, as I was saying, being here has deeply confused me. Before coming here, I could memorize and sing hundreds if not thousand of songs everyday, but ever since I got here, it's hard to remember the words to even one."

"_That_ I can help you with!" said Caterpillar, grabbing something on his back that looked like an acoustic guitar. That had to be the guitar he heard before coming here. "You say you know a lot of songs right? I'll play tunes to many different songs and sing to them. If there's one that you remember, just sing along, alright?"

Caterpillar then began to play tunes on his guitar and sing. He played the first tune only to see Shuichi shaking his head, saying he didn't know the song. So then Caterpillar began playing the next song and like the last song, Shuichi shook his head. The caterpillar continued this pattern, only to have the pink haired boy shake his head every time. The caterpillar played one more song, having a feeling that Shuichi wouldn't know this song too. However, he jumped in surprise when he heard a second voice singing with him. He looked over to see Shuichi singing along with him. They continued to sing until Caterpillar decided to let Shuichi sing on his own. That was no problem though, because Shuichi was too into the song to forget the words. But along with Shuichi's singing and Caterpillar's guitar playing, there was a chorus singing along. Shuichi looked over to see flowers with faces behind them, singing. He recognized their faces; they were the faces of Hiro's ex-girlfriends.

Once the song was over, the flowers went back to sleep and Caterpillar put his guitar away. He looked back at Shuichi. "Is that all your problems?" he asked in curiosity.

Shuichi shook his head. "Actually no," he replied softly, "I have one more problem. Though it might sound completely ridiculous."

"Nothing sounds ridiculous to me," said the caterpillar, "Tell me! I might be able to help you."

The pink haired boy sighed. "Well, I want to grow taller than I am now, because honestly, being about three inches is a terrible height to be in."

"Excuse me?" Caterpillar snapped, "I happen to be _exactly_ three inches tall and it's the perfect height for me!"

Shuichi knew he did something wrong. "I'm really sorry Caterpillar," he apologized in a worried tone, "I didn't mean to offend you. Three inches tall is the perfect height for you, but it's not my height. I used to be way taller than this but then I ended up this height. Please, I didn't mean to make you angry."

The caterpillar could see in Shuichi's eyes that the latter was about to cry. The pink haired boy really didn't mean to upset Caterpillar. Upsetting Caterpillar felt like upsetting Hiro for Shuichi, especially since they both looked similar. Caterpillar looked at Shuichi and could see truth in those violet eyes. He sighed.

"You're lucky I can't resist forgiving someone when I see tears coming out of the eyes of their pretty faces," he replied, sounding calm once again, "As for your height problem, I might be able to help you."

Shuichi looked up at him, his eyes not believing what the caterpillar was saying. "You can?"

"Of course," said Caterpillar, "In fact, there is something that should be able to help you grow right here in this spot."

Words could not describe the joy Shuichi felt with hearing that. He was so overjoyed he flew off the mushroom he was sitting on and flung his arms around the caterpillar. "Oh thank you so much!" he cried with joy before realizing what he was doing. He pulled back in embarrassment. "I-I'm really sorry about that."

The caterpillar just chuckled. "It's alright," he replied, "I'm quite used to people being grateful with my wisdom like that," He pointed at a short stubby mushroom that was half red, half blue. "You see that mushroom and the fact that one half of it is red, the other half of it is blue? Well, one half makes you bigger while the other half makes you smaller."

"Great!" Shuichi exclaimed, "Which side is which?"

"I don't know," Caterpillar shrugged, "You might need to figure that out yourself."

Shuichi glared at him. "If you don't know which half is which then how do you know the mushroom will make me bigger or smaller, huh?"

"Trust me," he assured the pink haired boy, "It'll make you bigger or smaller, I guarantee it. Don't forget; I have great wisdom."

"Some wisdom!" Shuichi muttered as he walked over to the red and blue mushroom. He decided to break a piece of each, just in case. He looked at the two different coloured mushroom pieces. One will make him bigger and one will make him smaller. The question was which one will make him bigger. He decided to eat a bit of the red mushroom. He hoped that that was the right one.

And it was. Shuichi noticed that he was growing. He grew and grew until he was back to his regular size. He was finally back to normal. But why did his neck feel so loose? His eyes were closed as he felt this peculiar feeling. It felt like something he never felt before, but it wasn't pleasurable. When he opened his eyes, he found that his head was above the trees. What had just happened?

Suddenly, he heard a familiar voice crying "Serpent! Serpent!" But what was Shuichi kidding? _Everyone_ in this crazy world looked and sounded like someone he knew. He looked in the direction to see a small bird with a face that looked like…

"Mom?" Shuichi cried out.

"What the hell kind of monster are you to call me 'Mom'?" she snapped at him, "Help me please! Serpent! Serpent!"

Shuichi remembered that no matter how much the people and creatures around him looked like people he knew, they weren't the people he knew. "I'm not a serpent!" Shuichi cried, "Really I'm not! I'm just… Whoa!"

Trying to walk around in his state caused Shuichi to trip and fall. He ended up lying in the ground with his head and neck against one of the trees. He looked on his chest to see what looked like Caterpillar sitting there.

"I guess we know what the red mushroom does!" he exclaimed.

Shuichi just stared at him. "Caterpillar, what happened to me?" he asked the caterpillar, "I saw myself reach my normal height. How did I still grow like this?"

The caterpillar began scratching his head. "Well actually, your body remained the height it was. It's just… well… let's just say your neck grew longer than it should have."

"MY WHAT GREW WHAT?" Shuichi looked at himself and realized that Caterpillar was right. His body was this exact height it should've been, but his neck had grown twice as long as it. He groaned. "This is just great! I wanted to be my normal height, not get a neck like this."

Caterpillar just laughed. "I'm sorry," he apologized while laughing, "It's just that you look like a giraffe with that neck." The caterpillar laughed so hard, he fell off Shuichi's chest.

Shuichi was not amused by the caterpillar's laugh. "I look like a rokurokubi from that one horror movie I've seen!" he cried. How was he going to return to normal? He then remembered the blue half of the mushroom. If the red half made him look like this, then the other one might reverse it. With the long neck he got, he leaned forward until he could take a bite of the blue mushroom. Once he did, he found himself shrinking. He was eventually back to the height he was before he ate the red mushroom.

"I can't believe I'm saying this," Shuichi began, "But I'm actually happier to be this height instead of having a snake like neck."

"Well, you know what both mushrooms do," Caterpillar replied, "What are you going to do? Neither make you the height you want to be without extending a part of you you don't want to extend."

Shuichi knew that Caterpillar was right. The red mushroom half made him the size he wanted to be but also extended his neck which was unwanted. It would happen again if he took a bite out of it again. Unless…

He had an idea. If taking a bite out of it resulted with what happened, then what if he just licked it? He did just that to see what would happen. Indeed, licking the piece instead of biting into it brought him back to his usual height and it didn't extend his neck or any part of his body. He looked back at Caterpillar.

"Thanks Caterpillar!" he exclaimed, "You really helped me out after all. I should probably get going now." But before he could walk away, he heard Caterpillar cry out to him to wait. He looked back at him.

"Since you're from the Otherworld, you don't know your way around Wonderland, don't you?" he asked, "I should probably accompany you to make sure you find your way home safe."

Shuichi walked over to Caterpillar and picked him up gently. "Are you sure?" he asked the caterpillar, "I'm sure you have better things to do than to come with me to find the door back to Tokyo."

"Nonsense! I'd be more than happy to come with you. I bet you don't even know the rules of Wonderland, do you?"

This confused Shuichi. "This crazy place has rules?"

"Yep! If you follow them, you should be able to make it back to the Otherworld safely. There are mainly two rules. The first rule is that everything here in Wonderland, people, creatures, and objects, don't make any sense. We're all supposed to be full of nonsense."

"What's the second rule?"

"There are no rules."

Shuichi just stared at him. "But how…? You said… Huh?"

Caterpillar tsked at him. "Did you forget Rule Number 1 already?"

The pink haired boy sighed. This place was gonna be hard to understand. With Caterpillar on his shoulder, Shuichi continued his way through Wonderland, finding his way back home again.

**Pinkshuchan: I think Shuichi will have a lot happen to him before he gets home. Then again, maybe not. Maybe all the things that will happen to him already happen to him. Or maybe they'll never happen at all. I think this story might be getting to me. Read and Review everyone!**


	5. Eggs, Pigs, and Cats

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hey everyone! It's Pinkshuchan! Last chapter, Shuichi had met Hiro's look-a-like, Caterpillar. With Caterpillar coming along with him, Shuichi continues on to find his way back home. Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 5

Eggs, Pigs, and Cats

Shuichi, with Caterpillar on his shoulder, continued walking through the forest, which he didn't remember how he got there in the first place. This place continued to confuse him but make him more curious as to what may happen next. If what Caterpillar said was true in the first rule of Wonderland that nothing in Wonderland ever makes any sense, then he knew he would have to expect the unexpected. As Shuichi was walking, a question came to thought. Caterpillar was said to be the wisest. Maybe he knew something about the rumour Shuichi heard from Pat. It was worth a try.

"Caterpillar," he spoke up, "What do you know about this rumour I heard? Something about a girl said to be a princess taken by someone named 'the Mad Hatter'."

The caterpillar almost fell off Shuichi's should but managed to regain balance. "Yes, I've heard that."

Shuichi was glad. "I'm just curious. Do you know anything else about it?"

Caterpillar just crossed his arms. "Well from what I've heard, right of the day the princess disappeared, the queen announced for her soldiers to find the Mad Hatter as she said that he was the one that had to have taken the princess."

"Did she have any evidence proving he was the one that took her?"

"Nope! She never depends on evidence."

"Then if she didn't have evidence, why would she automatically assume him to be the kidnapper? I mean, would there be a reason why he would take her? Any type of motive?"

"Oh yeah, he does have a motive!" Caterpillar replied, "Many years ago, the queen's ancestor became the queen of Wonderland and many cheered for her. But the Mad Hatter's ancestor was the only one to _not_ cheer for her. In fact it was the opposite; he booed at her and claimed that she was not the proper queen of Wonderland. The queen made a grudge against him and she swore that one day she would get his head. She never did. Since that day, every queen and every Mad Hatter fought. The Mad Hatters kept saying the queens in the throne weren't fit to rule Wonderland and the queens chased after them, swearing to get their heads. The princess was expected to follow the same path as her mother, the current queen-"

"So the current Mad Hatter could take the princess to keep the pattern from repeating!" Shuichi finished Caterpillar's sentence, "He could end it just by taking her and end the rule of the queen!"

"Precisely!" said Caterpillar, "But like you said, there's no actual way of knowing he took her. When cornered, the Mad Hatter kept replying 'I didn't take her!' before disappearing. No one knows where he might be, but I've heard something. It is rumoured that the Mad Hatter might've made a group of rebel forces to fight against the queen. It is unknown when they plan to fight."

This was very interesting. The queen claims the Mad Hatter took her daughter and the Mad Hatter claims that he never took her. Who to believe? Maybe hearing both of their stories would help figure out whose was the true story. But he never even met the queen nor the Mad Hatter. Where would he even find them?

Suddenly, something caught Shuichi's eye. It was something that completely stood out from the entire forest. You would have to be completely blind not to notice it.

"Caterpillar, do you see what I see?" he asked the caterpillar, "Do you see what I see?"

"No, I cannot see what you see," Caterpillar replied, "I can only see what I see. If I could see what you could see, I would have to have your eyes."

Shuichi was not amused with Caterpillar's answer. "Let me ask this in another way. Do you see a giant egg with a face, hair, arms, and legs wearing clothes and sitting on that brick wall?"

And Shuichi was quite right for right there was a brick wall in the middle of the forest with a person shaped like an egg with a face, long light brown hair, and wearing a yellow dress with white polka dots. For some strange reason, the egg female person reminded him a bit of Yoshiki, Yuki Kitazawa's younger brother turned sister. This didn't really become a surprise for Shuichi with how many people he met that looked like people he knew. He walked over to the egg.

"Excuse me!" he tried to get the egg's attention.

The egg looked over at him and looked so overjoyed, she almost fell. "I can't believe it!" she cried, "You noticed me! Finally, someone has noticed my presence for sitting on this wall! I'm so happy!"

Shuichi and Caterpillar just stared at her. "What do you mean someone has finally noticed your presence?" Shuichi asked, "It's hard to ignore you when you're a giant egg sitting on a wall! Wait a minute! Where have I heard that before?"

Caterpillar began to realize something. "I think I know what's going on!" he replied, "You're sitting on the Invisible Wall, aren't you? Obviously no one is going to notice you by sitting on the Invisible Wall."

"Why is it called the Invisible Wall?" Shuichi continued asking, "It doesn't look invisible to me."

"It's called the Invisible Wall because it is completely unnoticeable," the egg girl replied, "I thought that maybe if I sat on it people would notice it and me, but the only people that had been able to see me aside from you is the king, all the king's horses, and all the king's men."

Shuichi finally remembered. "I know now!" he called out, "This is from a nursery rhyme! I believe it's called 'Humpty Dumpty'."

The egg girl giggled. "That's my name! Humpty Dumpty is my name! I never knew anyone knew of it."

"Of course!" said Shuichi, "Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. All the king's horses and all the king's men couldn't put Humpty together again."

"Actually, all of that is true except for the last part. They did manage to put me back together again, just not in the way I used to be. I used to be a male egg before I fell off this wall. Now I'm a female egg."

Shuichi gasped. "That must sound terrible!"

"Not really," said Humpty, "I always wondered what it was like to be a girl egg. Now I got a chance to know. And you know what? I'm happy to be a girl egg, much happier than I was as a boy egg. I never want to be a boy egg ever again. NEVER! HAHAHAHAHA!"

Both the pink haired boy and the caterpillar were frightened for their own lives standing close to Humpty and began walking away. They continued onwards, trying to forget what happened with Humpty.

They kept moving on until they reached a cute little house. Shuichi figured that whoever lived there had to be really nice. He was about to move forward until Caterpillar pulled on his hair.

"I wouldn't go in there if I were you," he warned the pink haired boy, "That's the Duchess' house. According to my calendar, today is one of those days when she's the most moody, and when she's moody, so are the people that live with her."

"Oh come on Caterpillar," said Shuichi, "I'm sure it's not that bad."

Ignoring Caterpillar's words, Shuichi walked towards the house and knocked on the door. For some strange reason, he kept hearing crash noises from inside. He opened the door just to end up ducking as a plate was thrown right at him. He looked up to see a big man in the kitchen cooking something. Sitting in a rocking chair beside the kitchen was a familiar looking woman in a low-cut violet gown that exposed her cleavage with light violet see-through sleeves and a violet horned headdress with a light violet see-through veil. It was Judy, K's wife. And the big man in the kitchen looked like Ark, her bodyguard.

Shuichi's presence didn't know unrecognized, for the Judy look-a-like, who Shuichi believed had to be the Duchess, looked up at Shuichi. Her gaze was as sharp as daggers, her face sharp with anger. She stood up and walked over to him.

"Who are you?" she ordered, "Why are you here?"

The pink haired boy could tell that she wasn't pleased that he was there. "I'm really sorry," he apologized, "If you want me to, I'll…" Before he could say another word, Shuichi began sneezing. He thought that it was only him, but he saw that both Caterpillar and the Duchess were also sneezing. He didn't know what was going on?

"Why… ACHOO! Why are we… ACHOO! Sneezing?" he asked between sneezes.

"It's because… ACHOO! Because the Duchess' cook… ACHOO! He likes to put… ACHOO! Lots of pepper… ACHOO! In his dishes. ACHOO!" Caterpillar replied.

"But… ACHOO! I don't think… ACHOO! There's any… ACHOO! Dishes that…ACHOO! Needs this much… ACHOO! Pepper! ACHOO!" said Shuichi.

Ark's look-a-like, the Cook, stopped with what he was doing and glared at Shuichi. "What did you say?" he snapped, "Not any dishes that need this much pepper? Don't be ridiculous! It's not that isn't any dishes that don't need too much pepper, but that there's too many dishes that don't use enough pepper. Pepper goes best with everything!"

"Enough talk about pepper Cook!" the Duchess snapped back at the Cook, "I just want dinner done quickly! It _is_ almost finished right?"

The Cook bowed. "Yes Mistress Duchess," he replied, "It will be done before you leave to play croquet with the queen."

The Duchess walked over to him. "It better! I'm starving like a pig here!" She then began speaking sweetly. "By the way Cook, have you seen my cat?"

"No Ma'am I haven't."

She sighed before walking around her house. "Kat? Where are you my little Kitty Witty?" she called from all over the house.

Shuichi looked over at Caterpillar in confusion. "She has a cat?"

Caterpillar nodded. "Yep, she has a cat. In fact, he's very precious to her. He goes by the name Cheshire Kat but she calls him 'Kat' for short, and that's Kat with a K."

'Kat with a K?' Shuichi had a really bad feeling about this. He had a really bad feeling who this 'Cheshire Kat' is. And he knew he was right when he saw a grin appear out of nowhere with no face as soon as the Duchess walked back in and purred in a familiar voice:

"You called for me my puuurrrrrrfect duchess?"

The owner of the grin revealed himself. Just as Shuichi thought, it was K with purple cat ears, fangs, and whiskers wearing a purple striped cat suit that looked tight on him. The Duchess ran over to him and held him close.

"There you are my Silly Willy Kitty Kat!" she cried out with a pout, "I went looking up and down for you."

Shuichi wasn't sure whether laugh hilariously with how ridiculous K looked wearing a cat costume or be a little creeped out with how his Duchess who looked like K's wife was snuggling him. It was as if he really was a cat, which in this place, he was. But even though he was creeped out by this, something was going to creep him out more.

Walking towards them looked a lot like K and Judy's son, Michael, but he didn't really look like himself. He still had the same hair and eyes, but he looked like a little pig wearing clothes. _That_ was the last straw that caused Shuichi to run out of that crazy house. He ran as fast as he could until he was very far away. Caterpillar just stared at him.

"I guess I was right when I said to stay away from that place, was I?" he asked with a smirk.

Shuichi looked over to him. "I only ran away because it looked completely insane, not to mention I was almost killed because of that cook!" he cried out, "I hope I never have to go into that house again!"

"You won't have to, especially after what we're gonna do to you."

Shuichi looked in the direction of the voice to see three familiar faces. He groaned. It was the three birds from before, Dodo, Lory, and Eaglet. "Not you guys again! Can't you just leave me alone? You already got your asses kicked the last time we met."

"But this time that tap dancing friend of yours isn't here to save you," said Dodo, "You will pay for all that you did to us!"

Shuichi looked around to see that there was no way to escape. The birds had him cornered. They walked closer and closer until they saw something above Shuichi. Shuichi wasn't sure what was happening with the birds until they began to run away. This didn't make any sense. Why did the birds run away? It wasn't until he heard laughing behind him that he realized the cause of it. He turned around to see the Cheshire Kat sitting there, laughing hysterically.

"Those birds really ran, didn't they?" he laughed, "Man, I really love to scare birds! HAHAHAHAHA!"

Kat seemed to notice that Shuichi wasn't really laughing with him. In fact, he had a grim frown on his face. The cat began hanging upside down with his legs hanging tightly on the strong branch he was sitting on and still gave that giant grin.

"Come on now!" he continued, "This is a time to laugh. Turn that frown…" He turned right side up, "… upside down!"

Shuichi didn't look amused. In fact, it just angered him more. Before he could do anything, Caterpillar began calling out to Kat.

"Hey Kat!" said Caterpillar, "Long time since we've chatted, hasn't it?"

Kat got off the branch he was on and walked over to Shuichi and Caterpillar. "Caterpillar, aren't you a sight for sore eyes!" When he was close enough to Caterpillar, he lowered his paw and the caterpillar gave him a low five. He then looked up at Shuichi. "And who is your cute friend?"

"He doesn't know who he is," Caterpillar replied, "But he calls himself Shuichi. He's from the Otherworld."

"The Otherworld?" Kat exclaimed, "It's been a while since I've seen an Otherworlder here. When was it? I think I was still a kitten."

Shuichi crossed his arms. "Yeah well I'm trying to find something that could help me get back home, so if you excuse me-!"

But before Shuichi could walk away, Kat stopped him. "Do you like riddles? Do you want to solve one?" Shuichi couldn't say anything because Kat just went ahead anyway.

Many often dread

Spills of blood of red.

Only a pure bright white light

Can cure away the fright.

"That doesn't even make any sense!" Shuichi cried out.

Caterpillar tapped the pink haired boy's shoulder. "Shuichi, remember rule number 1?"

Shuichi sighed. "I know, nothing here makes any sense, but that is just too impossible to figure out."

Kat laughed. "Of course! It's a riddle! It's supposed to be impossible to figure out. If it wasn't, it would be just an ordinary question."

He had enough. "I'm through with this nonsense!" Shuichi snapped, "We're out of here Caterpillar!" But before he could walk away, Kat called back to him.

"Where do you plan to go?" he asked.

Caterpillar had to admit that even _he_ had no idea where Shuichi wanted to go, but he figured Shuichi would want to go anywhere that might help get back home. He ended up surprised with Shuichi's answer.

"Well," Shuichi began, "I've been thinking about something that I heard and I'm sure Caterpillar might know the way. I'm thinking about going to see the queen of this place."

Both the caterpillar and the cat were shocked with the pink haired boy's answer. Nonetheless, Kat kept grinning. "You wish to see the queen? Oh, you must! She'll be completely _mad_ about you. Some people like to go left to see her, some people like to go right to see her, but I prefer to go straight ahead." Without warning, he walked over to the tree in front of them and pushed the bark, revealing a door.

This was the first time Shuichi smiled in front of Kat. "Oh, thank you Mr. Kat!" he cried with joy.

"You're quite welcome!" said Kat, who had become nothing more than a head, "But just one thing I should let you know; you must be cautious around the Queen of Hearts. If you're not careful, you may just lose your head! Oh, and your mind too!" Without another word, Kat's head disappeared as he laughed until nothing more than a grin was left, but eventually even the grin disappeared.

Was that another riddle? Shuichi huffed. He was really getting annoyed by everything Kat threw at him, and continued on through the door in the tree to where this 'Queen of Hearts' was.

**Pinkshuchan: That was quite a chapter. I bet the people that know the story are wondering why I've completely skipped to the Queen of Hearts. Don't worry, if you're wondering with what's going on, the story is changed quite a bit. I will still have a lot of stuff from both Alice Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, but not in the way it originally is. I have to keep it my own fanstory and not something completely copied after all, but a lot of stuff you've seen in both those books will be in this story. Read and Review!**


	6. Queen of Hearts

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hey everyone! Pinkshuchan here! Last chapter, Shuichi met Humpty Dumpty, the Duchess, and the Cheshire Cat- Whoops, the Cheshire **_**Kat**_**, Kat with a K. Anyways, he's now on his way to meet the Queen of Hearts. What will happen once he meets her? Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 6

Queen of Hearts

Shuichi walked through the hidden door on the tree only to end up in a beautiful garden that looked very familiar to him. He knew he saw it somewhere before but where had he seen it? It was a big garden with a pond with lily pads, pillars of silver around the place, and so many flowers, especially roses on bushes shaped like suits on cards. That was when Shuichi remembered. This was the garden he had so much trouble getting into from the hallways of doors. Beyond the garden was a silver palace that stood so tall it looked like it touched the sky. He figured that was where the Queen of Hearts lived.

As he walked through the garden, Shuichi began thinking about the riddle the Cheshire Kat gave him. He wanted to leave it alone and mind his own business, but he couldn't help but feel like it was something very important. Caterpillar, who was still on Shuichi's shoulder, noticed something with the pink haired boy's face and began wondering what it could be.

"Shuichi, what's wrong?" he asked in curiosity.

Said boy looked at the caterpillar. "I can't help but think of the riddle Kat said. It feels too important to let go, but I can't think of what the answer might be."

"You don't have any idea?"

"Well I was thinking that he might have meant death but it sounds too depressing and I feel like that might not be the answer at all. But that's the only way I can compare blood and light."

Caterpillar shook his head. "Don't judge a book by its cover Shuichi!" he replied, "Just because something is considered that way, it isn't always the case."

Their conversation then got interrupted by the sounds of rustling and murmuring. Curious as to what it could be, Shuichi walked to where he could hear the sounds and found what looked like a guy in a two of clubs card costume painting the white roses on one of the rose bushes red. It looked strange to him as to why a guy dressed as a card would be painting roses on a bush red. Wondering why someone would do something like this, he walked over to the card guy and tapped his shoulder.

"Excuse me!" he tried to get the card's attention, "I don't mean to disturb you but why are you painting those roses red?"

The card jumped and looked over at Shuichi to reveal himself as Yuji, Hiro's older brother. He had a worried look on his face, a look that seemed like he was scared of death. He calmed down a bit when he saw Shuichi and began explaining.

"Well, these roses were supposed to be red roses," he began, "But I accidentally planted white roses by mistake, and the queen, she detests white roses. Actually it's more like she completely loathes them. If she finds out I planted white roses instead of red, it'll be off with my head!" He even made the finger movement across to show him what he meant.

Shuichi gaped. "Are you sure you're not just over exaggerating?" he asked, "She wouldn't really chop your head off just because of one tiny error… w-would she?"

"Believe me, she would!" he replied, "In fact, my fellow gardener had his head chopped off after making that same mistake I made six years ten months nine hours twenty minutes and thirty three seconds ago."

"That's exact!" Shuichi gasped in surprise as the card pulled out a picture. He pulled the picture in front of the pink haired boy's face. The latter looked at the picture to see that it looked like Yuki Kitazawa, Yuki's old tutor, dressed up in a card suit as a four of diamonds in front of a rose bush.

"Poor Four," the card continued, "He never got a chance to see the light of day again because he lost his head. Which is why I'm painting these roses red. I have too much to live for! After all, I'm going to be the best let alone first card actor in all of Wonderland!"

Shuichi sighed. That sounded exactly like Yuji. Like Yuji, the card is determined to get into the acting business. This surprised the pink haired boy. Do they even have any television in Wonderland or will it all be acting on the stage? And what role could a solo card actor play? It would be hard for a card to be an actor. Unless there was a minor role that needed a card. If so, then what production?

He looked back at the card, who had returned to painting the roses red. He looked at Caterpillar, who was furiously shaking his head, before grabbing a paintbrush, dipped it in the paint, and helped the card paint them. Whether it sounded like an impossible dream or not, it was still a dream. Shuichi knew exactly how it felt to have a dream that sounded impossible. But he never gave up on that dream; it was part of his nature to never give up, even with Yuki. A lot of people would consider it childish, but in Shuichi's case it was a personality that was fighting for what he wanted.

Suddenly, trumpets could be heard from a distance. Shuichi looked in the direction of the sound in curiosity. However upon looking at the card's face, it didn't seem like a good thing. People began forming in the garden; many of them wore red with white or black with white. When Shuichi took a closer look, he saw that most of them were cards, similar to Yuji's look-a-like. There were two people dressed completely different from the cards that were coming out, earning applause. By the reaction the cards were giving, Shuichi had to guess that they had to be the king and queen. He walked forward to go see them before he ended up bumping into something or someone. He looked to see someone he was glad to see.

"Mr. Rabbit!" he exclaimed.

The White Rabbit, who had grabbed hold of his glasses the moment he bumped into the pink haired boy, put them back on and looked at Shuichi's face. He looked worried as he turned around and began walking away as he muttered something. Shuichi followed after him, wondering what was wrong.

"Mr. Rabbit!" he called out as he followed, "I have a bone to pick with you about what happened to me."

The rabbit looked back at Shuichi with an expression so worried; tears were coming out of his eyes. "I know exactly why you've come to me," he replied with a whisper, "You want me to get you back to the Otherworld."

"So you _do_ know!"

He shushed the pink haired boy. "Yes I do, but please keep it down," He looked around to see if anyone could notice them. "No one must hear of this discussion, especially the queen. She's not supposed to know about the Otherworld. If she finds out I'll be disappointing my ancestors; the Great White Rabbits. As to getting you home, you might need to wait until after Her Majesty's croquet game. If she notices I'm missing, it will be off with my head."

He was about to walk away until Shuichi stopped him. "Wait, you know how I can get home?"

"Yes, of course. If I know how to get myself there and back, there's a good chance I know how you can get you home. But only I know how so you'll need to wait until after the croquet game." He then walked away, leaving Shuichi on his own. The pink haired boy was ready to follow him again until he heard something; something that sounded like a cry. It came in the direction of the rose bush the Yuji look-a-like was at. He saw him being dragged by two of the cards with hearts on them over to the king and queen. Shuichi was shocked as soon as he heard the voice of the queen.

"What is going on here?" she snapped at the cards, "There better be a good reason why I am disturbed just when we are going to start playing croquet."

"Your Majesty," one of the cards began as he bowed, "We caught this gardener painting your royal roses red."

She walked over to him and glared at him. "Is this true?" she asked him in a quiet yet threatening tone.

The card gardener, trembling in fear of what may become of him, gave a big gulp before replying: "You'll never take me alive!" He broke free from the other cards' grasp and ran as fast as he could out of the garden. The cards were about to follow until the queen stopped them.

"Let him go!" she replied, "It's not he'll come back anytime soon. If he does, it'll just be off with his head!" She then looked over at Shuichi, which then made him recognize her. The queen looked like Mika, wearing a long black dress that reached the ground and hugged her figure with a big red heart over her chest but still exposing a lot of cleavage and a red sash, and long black sleeves not attached to the dress; a golden tiara with a heart shaped ruby rested on her head. She walked towards him as she was fanning herself with a red fan.

"And who are you?" she asked him in a harsh tone as soon as she reached him, "I've never seen your head before. I know because I remember the heads of everyone I know."

"I…" Shuichi began before noticing the White Rabbit signalling him to not say where he was from, "I come from a place really far away from here; so far, you can't get there on foot."

The queen eyed him in suspicion. She was unsure if what he answered was the answer she wanted to hear. Nonetheless, she dropped her expression and gave a slight smile. "Well, what brings you here to Wonderland? And if it's hard to get here on foot, how _did_ you get here?"

"Well, I got here accidentally by some sort of magic, so now I'm trying to find my way hom-!"

"YOUR WAY?" she snapped, "THE WAYS OF WONDERLAND ARE ALL MY WAYS!"

Shuichi swore he was about to fall over from her screaming at him. "Okay, let me rephrase that. I ended up here in Wonderland, and I'm trying to get back."

"Do you know how?"

"My dear," the king, who looked like Tohma's look-a-like wearing a long red coat with white fur trimmings around the edges over a white shirt with a golden sash, white pants, and red and black boots with a gold crown on his head, spoke up as he walked over to his wife, "Shouldn't we leave this matter alone? I mean, we came out here for a good croquet game, not to question this child these questions."

The queen looked over at her husband. "You may have a point there," she replied before looking back at Shuichi, "You are to play croquet."

Shuichi began to fidget with his fingers. "Well, I've heard a bit about it from my lover as he's read a lot about it but I-!"

"That wasn't a request," she said as she smacked him right on the head with her fan, which she had already closed, "It was an order. You are to play croquet!"

"But I-!"

"Either you play croquet or you lose your head!"

Shuichi gulped as he placed his hand on his neck. He was afraid of embarrassing himself in front of everyone there, but he certainly didn't want to lose his head. He gave a melancholy grin. "I guess I'll be playing some croquet!" he replied.

And so, they began playing croquet. Everyone was split into two teams. The king and all the cards with black suits were put in one team and the queen, Shuichi, and all the cards with red suits were put in another. The White Rabbit, on the other hand, was the referee. Shuichi was completely shocked with what were used to help play the game. Cards with two different coloured ties on them were the wickets, flamingos were used as mallets, and hedgehogs were used as balls. Even though he had never played croquet before, he knew that these were not the proper things to use to play croquet, but decided not to say anything about it since all of Wonderland was completely crazy. That, and because he feared that if he said anything offensive, he may lose his head. And as they played, Shuichi did see some of the cards lose their heads.

As they played on, only the king on his team was left, and the queen and Shuichi were the only ones left on their team. The queen looked at him. "I thought you said you were bad at this game."

"I guess it might be Beginner's Luck, Your Majesty," Shuichi replied, "This is honestly my first time playing this game."

"Beginner or not, with you my team is winning," She looked up at the sky. "This reminds me of the good ol' days; the days when it was just me, my husband, and my daughter."

Shuichi lowered his head. "I've heard about your daughter; about how she disappeared without a trace."

"Yes. If she was still here, she would've grown into a beautiful woman for all to admire her beauty."

This made Shuichi confused. "How long ago was she kidnapped?"

"Eight years ago."

"EIGHT YEARS?"

"Technically it was eight years eleven months nine hours and thirty eight minutes ago."

"And you haven't found anything on where she might be?"

The queen's face changed from an expression of mourning to an expression of vile anger. "I do know _one_ thing," she spoke in a deadly tone, "She had been taken from me by the Mad Hatter. That bastard! I know he was responsible of her disappearance."

"But how do you know he was the one that took her?"

"Because he did, that's why! I know! If I know, that means it did happen. Everything I know is true."

"But that isn't enough to assume he took her. If you don't have enough evidence to prove he took her, then that means he might not have taken her."

The queen glared at Shuichi, making the latter tremble. "Are you siding with the Mad Hatter?"

"N-No Your Majesty," he stuttered, "I-I'm not on his side, I-!"

"So you're on my side?"

"Th-That's not what I meant either! I-!"

"Then whose side are you on?"

"I-I-I-!"

"SPEAK UP DAMMIT!"

"Your Majesty!"

Everyone looked over at a couple of card soldiers holding someone in their grasp like they did with the Yuji look-a-like. In their grasp looked like…!

It was a Fujisaki look-a-like dressed in a white knave's outfit with red hearts. He was dragged by the card soldiers over to the queen. The queen on the other hand was glaring as the soldiers.

"What is it now?" she snapped at them.

"Your Majesty," one of the soldiers replied, "We caught this boy snooping around the castle. He was awfully suspicious."

"Suspicious you say?" the queen asked, "In that case, OFF WITH YOUR-!"

"WAIT!" the king called out, "We don't exactly know what he did, my dear. We should give him a trial first before we know for sure what's going on. For all we know, the soldiers might have made a mistake."

The queen eyed her husband before closing her eyes. She sighed. "I suppose one little trial will suffice. First the trial, then off with his head!" And so, everyone began walking away and was heading to where Shuichi guessed had to be where the trial was going to take place. He looked at Caterpillar, who came out of his little hiding place somewhere on Shuichi and appeared back on Shuichi's shoulder. They could tell just by looking at each other that the trial was not going to go well.

**Pinkshuchan: A trial! At least it isn't Shuichi being put on trial. Still, what is going to happen during the trial? Read and Review everyone!**


	7. Trial, Plot, Wish Oh My!

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hey everyone! It's Pinkshuchan. Last chapter, Shuichi met the Queen of Hearts who is now holding a trial for the Fujisaki look-a-like. What is to happen next? Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 7

The Trial, the Plot, and the Wish… Oh My!

The court was an interesting looking thing. It was set up in one part of the garden and had everything a court for a trial needed; a high pedestal with a chair for the judge, or judges in this case since both the king and queen were seated, a pedestal for the defendant to stand in front of which was where Fujisaki's look-a-like was standing, a pedestal for the witnesses, seats for the jury in which the jury was mainly filled with ducks, and seats for guests to sit in. Shuichi was in one of those seats with Caterpillar on his shoulder, wondering how trials in Wonderland worked. But it also wasn't similar to the trials in Tokyo as there weren't any refreshments being passed down as if this were a baseball game. Shuichi ate some rainbow coloured popcorn as he watched.

The king hit the pedestal with his gavel. "Court is now in session!" He looked over at the White Rabbit. "Now Mr. Rabbit, if you would please read what this boy is being accused for."

The White Rabbit nodded before looking at his papers. "This boy has committed a crime, in which he snuck into the palace when everyone else was out playing croquet, and he snooped. Not only that, but he also released prisoners who were currently on death row. His name is Jack!"

"Jack?" the queen interrupted, "Jack who?"

"Jack Rabbit!" the boy, Jack replied with a bit of a laugh, "Sorry, that's what I get for interacting with the wrong crowd all the time. My name is Jack Knave, also known as the Knave of Hearts."

"Knave of Hearts? I don't remember giving any boy the title of Knave of Hearts! Off with his-!"

"Wait a moment my dear," the king interrupted this time, "Maybe you gave him the title and completely forgot. You have done so before in the past; this might be another of those times. At least wait until we call some witnesses, then we will call the sentence, and then call the verdict."

Shuichi wanted to smack his forehead with his hand with that, but chose not to in fear with what the queen might do to him if she caught him. But the tickle of tiny heavy breaths on his neck distracted him from the trial occurring and onto Caterpillar, as he looked like he was completely ill looking so pale and breathing hard. The pink haired boy asked the caterpillar if he wasn't feeling well, but the latter replied that he was fine; that he wasn't ill. Shuichi didn't really believe him but chose not to press the matter harder and instead began focusing on the trial.

"Anyways," the king continued, "Is there any witnesses?"

"Don't bother Your Majesty," said Jack, "If I get to plead myself, I plead myself guilty. I even admit it."

This caused a lot of gasps. "But why?" asked the king.

Jack stepped out of the pedestal and pointed at the queen. "Listen here," he began, "Your rule as queen will soon come to an end. The queen I serve, the _true_ Queen of Hearts, will eliminate you."

Shuichi expected the queen to become furious and yell 'Off with his head'. Instead, she just laughed, as if the knave had told a joke. "The _true_ Queen of Hearts? You must be joking. _I'm_ the true Queen of Hearts. Whoever calls herself the true Queen of Hearts other than myself has to be the faker. Off with his-!"

Before the queen could continue, something happened to Shuichi. It had to be the popcorn because Shuichi grew into a giant again, turning everyone's attention off of Jack and onto him. Why did these things always happen to him?

"Excuse me!" the king called out to him, "You up there! I'm sorry but according to Rule 42, all persons more than a mile high must leave the court immediately so if you don't mind-!"

"I'm not a mile high!" Shuichi complained, "And if I remember correctly, there are no rules in Wonderland, so there's no point for me to leave."

"Are you disobeying the rules?" the queen yelled, "I will not have anyone disobey me and my rules! Off with your head!"

The soldiers charged over to Shuichi and tried to get Shuichi down only to fail due to height. With Shuichi's height, the soldiers looked like nothing more than regular cards. But they weren't going to give up. Using their suit shaped spears, they attacked Shuichi's ankles, trying to get him to fall over. And unfortunately for Shuichi, they were about to succeed.

But then Jack threw something at one of the card soldiers and began taunting them. "Hey, this is my trial! Shouldn't it be me you try to get the head of?"

The card soldiers complied with Jack's taunt and began going after him. Little did they know was that the knave was luring them on purpose. Before they could reach him, a white flash jumped out of nowhere and began attacking the soldiers. The queen was devastated. Who would dare attack her soldiers? She then saw the face of the culprit.

Riding on a giant white cat that almost looked like a panther but with pointy ears was a young woman with long blonde hair all the way down her back tied up in a loose braid and a curvy figure that made her look like a 5'5 model wearing what looked like a silver armoured one piece swimsuit with a big heart shaped hole where her cleavage was supposed to be along with long silver and white gauntlets and silver and white high heeled boots. A white mask covered the lower half of her face so only her forehead and eyes could be seen. The moment she saw the queen, she got off her giant cat and walked towards her. The queen's face seemed to get darker the moment she saw the girl in silver and white, as if she was dealing with an archrival.

"You!" she hissed, "You're the _queen_ that's calling herself the true Queen of Hearts, aren't you?"

The girl chuckled. "It's not the title I can call myself right now but yes," she replied, "I go by two different titles. I preferred to be called 'The White Queen' but I guess it's possible to also call me 'The Mad Queen'!" She walked over to Jack, grabbed his hand, and pulled him back to the giant cat. "I did not come here to fight you, _Red Queen_. I merely came here for my knave. Our fight will come soon enough." They climbed onto the cat and before the queen could do anything, the armoured girl and the knave had managed to leave.

Shuichi had watched that entire thing go on and was confused. Everyone in Wonderland he had seen he recognized, but that armoured girl was the only one he didn't recognize. That didn't mean she didn't feel familiar to him though. The moment he realized what just happened, he quickly ran as fast as he could. The only problem was that with the height he was, he couldn't properly escape, especially the passageway through the tree which was the best way to escape. He didn't know what he was going to do.

"Shuichi!" Caterpillar called weakly from Shuichi's shoulder, "Look in your apron pockets!"

The pink haired boy complied and dug his hands in the pockets only to feel something familiar. It was the red and blue coloured mushroom pieces. Caterpillar must've snuck them in when he wasn't looking. Shuichi took a bite from the blue mushroom and managed to shrink back to normal height. Once he changed back, he ran through the passageway through the tree and ran deep into the forest; never stopping until he was far away from the castle.

In another part of the forest Jack and the armoured girl also known as the White Queen had escaped and got off the giant white cat. The White Queen wrapped her arms around the cat's neck and hugged it.

"You are such a good girl!" she told the cat, "You are the greatest friend anyone could ask for!"

Jack just stared at his queen and gave a barfing sound. "Honestly Your Majesty," he whined, "Is it really necessary for you to do that here?"

The White Queen glared at him and began walking in his direction. "Are you questioning everything I do? Is it wrong to show affection to my cute little kitten?"

"That is _not_ a cute little kitten!" Jack replied, earning a glare from the cat.

She glared harder. "Are you purposely trying to make me angry?" She grabbed at his neck, choking him. "I'm not called 'The Mad Queen' for nothing. If I really wanted to, I would snap your neck right here, right now. But," She dropped him. "You're lucky that unlike the Red Queen I have a heart and don't go off killing people just because they piss me off," She turned around and began walking with Jack, who had already recovered from the girl's grip on his neck, following right behind. "Changing the subject, did you find anything before you were caught? Anyone kept in that bitch's palace's dungeon?"

"The only one that was in the dungeons was the Duchess. Naturally I helped her escape. She's home free now but I have a feeling the Red Queen's soldiers will be sent after her."

"Then we'll have to find her first and bring her, her cook, and her son back to the castle with us. The more we have on our side the better!" Her face fell into a face mixed with relief and depression. "So you didn't find _him_ in there?"

Jack shook his head. "No Your Majesty. He was not there nor was his head seen in her head collection. He's most likely still alive somewhere." The White Queen nodded before she got back onto her cat and pulled Jack on with her, in which they travelled back to the White Queen's castle."

Meanwhile back at the palace, The Queen of Hearts was pacing around in anger while her husband watched from in his throne. He hated when she got this way as she was impossible for her to listen to anyone in this state. He really wished she would be able to calm herself down from her temper like him.

"Please my dear!" he spoke up, "You need to stop pacing like that. It's not very good to do that."

She glared at him. "And why the hell should I calm down?" she snapped at him, "You saw what happened at the trial! First that little brat with the pink hair insulted my rules and my ways, and then that 'White Queen' claimed that she was going to steal my throne!" She gave one big final scream before seating herself back on her throne. It stayed quiet for a bit until something clicked in her head. "Darling, who was that girl?"

The king began to think. "Don't you mean the White Queen? I thought you already knew her name from your-!"

"I didn't mean her, I mean the other one. You know the one with the pink hair."

"It was a boy my dear. A boy in a dress."

"A girl, a boy in a dress, I don't give a damn! Where did that little brat come from? That's what's questioning me. He said that he came from a place that was impossible to get to by foot. There's nothing like that in Wonderland at all."

"Maybe you should ask Mr. Rabbit. He knows a lot of stuff."

The queen rapidly stood up. "That is exactly what I'll do! Someone bring me the White Rabbit! AND I MEAN NOW!"

In a flash, the White Rabbit was brought to her. He trembled in fear of what the queen would want with him. She slowly walked towards him and looked him straight in the eye.

"Mr. Rabbit," she began in a sweet voice, "You wouldn't, by any chance, know where that pink haired girl boy came from do you?"

The White Rabbit was so nervous he was sweating. He had to keep his word with his ancestors that he would never reveal the Otherworld to the queen, but he feared with what would happen to him if he didn't comply.

"I'll ask you again," she continued in a harsher tone, "Where did that little brat come from?"

"He's from the Otherworld!" the White Rabbit slipped out only to cover his mouth too late.

This interested the queen. "The Otherworld? But I thought it was only a myth. Are you telling me that there actually _is _an Otherworld out there? How do I get there? Tell me now or off with your head!"

"Only I can open the door to the Otherworld!" he cried, "I can access the door that brings me there and back. It's because he saw me and followed me back to Wonderland that he ended up here!" Tears fell down his face. "I'm such a disgrace to all white rabbits! I shouldn't even live!"

"Well you're gonna live!" said the queen, "You're the only one that can take me to the Otherworld and that's what you're going to do. But first, we will need to get rid of the pink haired brat and the White Queen. As long as they are still alive my chance to take over the Otherworld would be ruined."

The king walked over to his wife. "What do you mean my dear?"

The queen smirked at him. "It's quite simple actually darling! I get rid of the brat and the White Queen, and the Mad Hatter while I'm at it, and then Mr. Rabbit here will bring us to the door to the Otherworld and take us and our soldiers there so we can take over. Soon, I will be the queen of everything AND NO ONE WILL BE ABLE TO STOP ME!" She broke into maniacal laughter, scaring everyone that could hear her.

Back in the forest, Shuichi had finally stopped running and was not leaning against the closest tree he could find. He ran quite a distance; there was no way the queen and her card soldiers could've followed.

"I guess we're safe Caterpillar!" Shuichi panted, knowing his insect friend would agree. But it began to worry him when there wasn't a reply. He looked around, calling Caterpillar's name, until finally, he could faintly hear his voice close by. Shuichi looked behind him to see Caterpillar hanging upside down on a tree branch.

"Caterpillar, what's wrong?" he asked in worry, "Why are you hanging upside down like that? And why do you look far worse now than you did back at the trial?"

The caterpillar looked over at Shuichi with a melancholy smile. "Shuichi," he whispered, "I'm afraid this will be where we have to part."

Shuichi's eyes widened. "I don't understand."

"I'm saying that my time is up. I'm going through my metamorphosis, transforming myself into a chrysalis. I will be asleep for a while."

"No!" Shuichi cried, tears forming in his eyes, "Please don't go! You've helped me so much through Wonderland. What would I do without you?"

Caterpillar just stared at him, keeping his melancholy smile. "I've taught you enough to help you continue on with your goal to get back to the Otherworld. However, I have one last advice for you; find the Mad Hatter. I think that if you find him, you can stop this endless war between him and the Queen of Hearts. I can sense it! But you need to find him. So find him, stop the war, find the White Rabbit, and get yourself back home. Oh, and Shuichi? Don't forget to know who you are!" Suddenly, from the tip attached to the branch lowering down to the head, Caterpillar's body began turning into what looked like a clear blue crystal.

Shuichi's tears fell harder down his face. "NO! Caterpillar! Don't leave me! Where do I even _find_ the Mad Hatter?" But it was no use. Caterpillar had already turned into a chrysalis. Shuichi fell onto the ground and let his tears flow. He was alone yet again, unsure of where to go.

He was once again completely lost.

Knowing that Caterpillar would've wanted him to go find the Mad Hatter, Shuichi began walking through the forest, trying to find his way. But it was no use. Shuichi wanted to believe that he could easily find the Mad Hatter without Caterpillar or anyone to help him but he couldn't. He even admitted it himself. He never would've been where he was without anyone's help. It was because he had people helping him that everything in his life came to be. Everyone was right; Shuichi admitted it himself that he was nothing more than a stupid immature brat who always let curiosity get the better of him.

And then it made him think of Yuki.

Did Yuki like that about him? Probably not or he wouldn't had been kicked out. If that was the case, then what was it about Shuichi that Yuki liked? His appearance? His voice? His popularity? They all sounded very shallow. But was that the case? No, he remembered that Yuki always fought to protect Shuichi with whatever problem the pink haired boy got himself into. Did that mean he was a burden to Yuki?

Shuichi fell to his knees into front of what looked like a clear blue pond. He looked in it and began reminiscing his times with Yuki. What he wouldn't give to be in Yuki's strong arms once again; to absorb the addicting scent of cologne and cigarettes, to feel the taller man's fingers brush through Shuichi's magenta locks, to feel his hot breath against his nape sending a tingle throughout his entire being. What Shuichi wouldn't give just to be with Yuki once again!

"Yuki," he sobbed in a whisper, his tears dripping in the pond, "I wish you were here."

Back in Tokyo, Yuki had finished a couple chapters of his latest novel. Without Shuichi to pester him, he was able to do a lot within a short time. Although as he wrote, he began questioning himself if maybe he might've been in the wrong to do what he did. He could understand why Shuichi would refer to him being 'mad as a hatter', and in a way he couldn't blame him. Yuki wasn't exactly the sanest person in the world. He sighed. He figured he would go find Shuichi and bring him home so they could do exactly what Shuichi wanted to do with Yuki if the latter didn't have a lot of work done. He was about to leave his study until…!

"Yuki."

The golden haired man could've sworn he heard Shuichi's sobs. He stopped to listen if Shuichi had snuck into the apartment while Yuki was occupied with his novel. Upon hearing nothing, he continued trying to head out until he heard Shuichi cry his name a little louder. Now Yuki knew it wasn't all in his head.

"Shuichi!" he called out through the entire apartment, "You better not have snuck in while I wasn't looking again!" But Shuichi's voice just kept crying Yuki's name. He didn't know where the voice was coming from until he saw some sort of glow coming from the bedroom. Yuki, unsure of what could possibly glow in there, went in to see what it was. What he couldn't believe was that the glow was coming from the full view mirror Shuichi had set up to admire what he chose to wear. Yuki shook his head, thinking that this was all just a dream; something that was coming to mind as he might've fallen asleep at his desk again.

But he was unaware that this was not a dream.

He looked in the mirror to see what looked like a beautiful lush forest filled with green and a clear blue pond in between him and the forest. But what he saw in the forest beyond the pond to see the owner of the voice.

Shuichi was sitting there in a blue dress with a white apron, black fishnet fingerless gloves, white stockings, black heels, and a black bow in his hair. Tears fell down his flushed cheeks as he cried Yuki's name. The latter didn't know what was going on.

"Shuichi!" Yuki called out to him, "What the hell are you doing behind the mirror? Why are you crying? And why the hell are you wearing a dress again?"

But the pink haired boy couldn't hear him. Instead he kept crying, repeating Yuki's name over and over. Yuki didn't know what was going on.

"Shuichi!" he continued as he held his hands against the glass, "Shuichi! Can't you hear me? Shuichi!"

Suddenly, the even more impossible happened. The mirror glowed brighter and the glass began absorbing Yuki's hands, pulling him in. The golden haired male tried to pull himself back only for the glass to pull him harder. It wasn't long until the mirror completely absorbed him and he was falling through some sort of bright rainbow portal like thing. He fell and fell until he fell into something soft yet cold.

As soon as he got a hold of himself, Yuki sat up and looked around. There was no forest or pond and worst of all, no Shuichi. Instead, he saw nothing but fog and snow. This had to be one really bad nightmare. He pinched himself to make sure and sure enough, he was not dreaming. He really did get sucked into the mirror. For some reason, he couldn't help but think that it was all Shuichi's fault. The question is where was Shuichi and how was he going to get back home.

But then, Yuki heard footsteps. He couldn't tell who or what was causing them, but he had a feeling it wasn't going to be good. He held up his guard, showing that he was prepared for whatever may come his way. But without warning, someone or something came out with a headlock, placed a cloth over his nose and mouth, and knocked him out. His body fell into the cold snow, completely unconscious. The reason of his unconsciousness walked around him, knelt down to him, and caressed his cheek.

"You," a soft voice spoke up, "You look so much like _him_." The owner of the voice helped the unconscious body up and walked over to something to help carry him, taking him somewhere far away.

**Pinkshuchan: Wow, that was a lot going on. I can't really say anything about what happened. What's going to happen next? Read and Review everyone!**


	8. The Mad Tea Party

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hey, it's Pinkshuchan! A lot happened last chapter; there was a trial for a knave named Jack and he was rescued by someone known as the White Queen, the Queen of Hearts found out about the Otherworld and has a plan to take over, Shuichi had to separate from Caterpillar and is now looking for the Mad Hatter, and now Yuki is pulled into Wonderland. What else is going to be added to this craziness? Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 8

The Mad Tea Party

Finally finished after a few hours of sobbing, Shuichi was ready to start his search for the Mad Hatter. He found himself walking everywhere in the forest; looking up trees, looking in holes, walking in bear caves which were occupied by… you guessed it, bears. Good thing Shuichi was able to outrun them even in heels. But yet no matter where he looked, he couldn't find where the Mad Hatter could be.

After a while he decided to give up. He knew there was no way he was able to find the Mad Hatter, especially if the latter kept himself well hidden so the Queen of Hearts couldn't find him. Shuichi continued walking in exhaustion until he saw a very sturdy rock to sit on. Needing to rest, he took this opportunity to sit down and relax for a bit.

Little did he know that he was going to get in even more trouble.

Upon sitting on the rock, a secret door on the floor appeared under Shuichi's feet. The rock then tilted close to the hole, causing the pink haired boy to fall in. He didn't have to fall for long though, as right under the hole was the start of a wooden slide. He slid down and down, going really fast. Shuichi would've found it fun if it wasn't for the fact that he didn't know where he was going to end up. He slid down a long way, turning left, turning right, through a loop de loop and criss cross until finally he reached the bottom. He landed on something that felt like a cushion but Shuichi knew that with this crazy world, it wasn't. He looked around. He seemed to be underground but it didn't feel like it. It looked like another part of Wonderland with a dark black sky. He tried moving until he felt something soft yet sticky on his hand. He looked at his hand to see something white and creamy on it. He looked at it closely. It looked like whipped cream. He took a taste. It _was_ whipped cream.

He was on a giant cake.

Of all the thing he expected he never thought that he would land on a giant cake. He had a lot of trouble trying to get down off the cake but he was still able to get off it, though he did have to wash the icing and whipped cream off of him. Good thing there was a watering hose nearby. After washing himself, he looked in front of him to see what looked like a giant brick wall. It would be impossible for anything or anyone to fly past it. There was a door in though, but Shuichi wasn't sure if he would be able to get in or not. He decided to at least try; his curiosity was getting the better of him again. He walked over to the door and knocked, only to be greeted by a thin rectangle piece of the door that slid open and revealed eyes.

"Why hello there," a familiar voice spoke to him from the other side of the door, "It's a lovely day, isn't it?"

Shuichi didn't understand why the person behind the door was sounding casual towards him who was a complete stranger but decided to just brush it off. "Yes, yes it is!" he replied, trying to sound polite.

But then the next thing caught him off guard. "Why is a raven like a writing desk?"

The pink haired boy couldn't believe it. Was he asked a riddle right before he even knew who he was talking to? He didn't know how to respond but the automatic response he gave was "I don't know!"

"That's the password!" the voice replied. With a creak the door opened, yet the owner of the voice was still nowhere to be seen. Shuichi wasn't sure if it was a safe idea to go inside, but he had a feeling he might've found the Mad Hatter's hideout. He cautiously walked in in case anything like what happened with the rock happened and he ended up hitting another trapdoor leading to another slide. But another surprise caught him off guard.

He felt hands grab his arms and felt a man's chest against his back.

Shuichi felt this strange person's warm breath against his nape, whispering things that the pink haired boy didn't want to hear. He struggled to break free from the mysterious stranger but his grip on him was tight. Why was it that he attracted so much unwanted attention? He felt his end getting closer until…

"MARCH HARE BEAM!"

The mysterious man's grasp was no longer on Shuichi. He didn't know what just happened but he was a little relieved. He looked over to where he felt the stranger move to only to see someone or something stuck in the wall with a familiar pink rabbit sitting there with a big smile on its face wearing a blue coat and a red bowtie. Shuichi was about to walk to it until he heard another familiar voice behind him.

"Hehe!" the person behind him chuckled, "Mock you silly turtle! You were about to do something naughty again, weren't you? Good thing Little March stopped you or you would've regretted it."

The person or thing stuck in the wall managed to push itself out, only to get a surprised and yet somewhat frightened expression on Shuichi. It was Tatsuha, or in this case, someone that looks like him but isn't. The Tatsuha look-a-like had furry calf like ears and wore a light brown suit with brown fuzzy slippers, a cow tail, and a green turtle shell. He looked a little angry until he saw who it was standing behind Shuichi.

"Haigha!" he cried, "I'm so sorry! He just looked so cute, especially in that dress! He looks like a cute young girl!"

Shuichi would've been offended if he didn't know himself that he did look like a girl. He couldn't blame the Tatsuha look-a-like; Shuichi purposely made himself look like a girl to be with Yuki. But then the figure the Tatsuha look-a-like was talking to walked past Shuichi and headed to him.

"Even so, it's inappropriate to do naughty things to someone you just met, especially in a public place!" said the figure, "Little March agrees!"

The latter lowered his head. "I'm really sorry Haigha," he replied, almost sounding like he was about to cry, "I must look terrible in front of you."

The figure just laughed. "Don't worry Mock. We all learn from our mistakes. That's what makes us alive. Just don't do it next time, even if it's with someone cute, which I can perfectly understand what you mean when you say he's cute." He picked the little pink rabbit up before facing Shuichi, which gave the latter another reason to be surprised.

It was a Ryuichi look-a-like with big long light brown ears, bucked teeth, and a small tail wearing a red coat with a blue bowtie and brown pants with rabbit feet and rabbit paws and some straw stuck in his hair. Upon seeing Shuichi, the Ryuichi look-a-like smiled and walked towards him.

"I'm really sorry about Mock Turtle," he replied, "Once he lays eyes on something cute he just can't resist doing stuff he shouldn't do. Anyways, I'm Haigha; Haigha the March Hare," He held the pink rabbit up, which Shuichi recognized to be Kumagoro. "And this is Little March Hare."

Shuichi titled his head. "Your name is… Hey-or?"

Haigha laughed. "I know; it's a funny name. It's spelt H-A-I-G-H-A but it's pronounced 'Hey-or'. I can't blame you for thinking it silly."

Shuichi shook his head. "No, I don't think it's silly at all. Actually, I think it's an interesting name."

The March Hare smiled. "How very kind! Anyways, what brings you here? Do you have any hatred on the Queen of Hearts whatsoever?"

"You mean _that_ bitch?" Shuichi yelled in anger. The thought of her almost try to kill him when he really didn't do anything really ticked him off.

Haigha nodded. "I'll take that as a yes," he replied. He walked over to a switch and hit it. "In that case, welcome to the Mad Tea Party!"

Shuichi stood there in awe of what was happening before him. The wall in front of him opened up, revealing a garden filled with many statues of kettles and teacups and what looked like a house standing behind it. In the middle of the garden was a giant table filled with so many people sitting there. There weren't enough people to be sitting at all the seats though there were still many seats left. Haigha took Shuichi's hand and led him to the table, seating him at the closest vacant seat. Haigha and Mock then went over to their own seats.

There wasn't a lot going on that didn't look unusual. All people were doing were sipping tea, eating tiny cakes, and talking. There were moments when Haigha would cry out "Clean cup! Clean cup!" and everyone would change seats but that was the only thing. Shuichi had the urge to sip some tea and eat cakes like everyone else, but he was afraid that he may repeat the growing and shrinking problem. He didn't want to go through all that again.

After a while, Haigha stood up and clanged his teaspoon to his teacup. "May I have your attention please?" he asked, earning silence from everyone else in return, "I know that this has been repeated many times before in the past but with living under here you forget the sense of time. If our watches still worked we would know what time it is today but we don't, so I'm going to say that it has been a long time since we all had our freedom. It has been so long since we had no worries in life. But all that changed because we did something to upset the Queen of Hearts and so we have become wanted criminals. But everything we have done to anger her have done things so innocently that it doesn't even earn a ticket. We all had that, which is why we are here. Anyone wish to tell their story of how they came here?" It became quiet as soon as Haigha finished. It didn't stay quiet for long though, for Mock stood up right after Haigha.

"I am willing to tell my story," he replied, "My name is Mock Turtle. I used to be a normal turtle, going to school like all the other turtles. I had a wonderful teacher who was an old sea turtle. We called him Tortoise."

One of the mice stood up. "Why was he called Tortoise?"

Mock faced him. "We called him Tortoise because he taught us, that's why," This made the mouse sit back down. "But then one day, I was taken in to experiment as the Queen of Hearts needed something to experiment on. The experiment caused me to become this. She found me the most ugly thing she had ever seen and yelled 'Off with his head!' If I hadn't have bumped into Haigha, I never would've been able to survive." He then sat down.

But then another stood up, which Shuichi recognized to be Tetsuya Ukai, Noriko Ukai's husband, who appeared to have tusks under his moustache, wearing a black suit. Another stood beside him who looked like Noriko wearing a light blue T-shirt, blue jeans, and a white apron with a paper hat on her head. They stood side by side as they began telling their story.

"My name is Walrus," said the Tetsuya look-a-like, "And this is my wife Carpenter. A while back, we came across some oysters. We were very starving and knew if we didn't eat them we would die."

"Yes," Carpenter replied, "But that wasn't why the queen demanded 'Off with their heads'. Apparently when I wasn't looking, my husband Walrus ate almost all of the oysters. I was lucky enough to save one," She picked up what looked like their daughter Saki in a long pink dress and a violet bonnet that looked like a shell. "The queen saw this and yelled 'Off with their heads!' because Walrus ate too many oysters and I didn't eat enough. So now because of that, we are here and still in love, even if my husband tried to trick me."

Walrus looked over at Carpenter. "I'm really sorry Carpenter. They just looked so good. I couldn't contain myself."

He received a smile from Carpenter. "That's alright as long as you promise me to never do anything like that again."

They then sat down. Haigha looked around. "Is there anyone else that has a story?" Everyone just sat there. Haigha kept looking until he saw Shuichi. At least, it looked like he was looking at Shuichi. Actually, it looked like he was looking at Shuichi's chest. "Dormouse! I'm sure you have a good story on how you joined the Mad Tea Party."

Shuichi was completely surprised. Who was Dormouse? He then looked down to see the cutest thing alive other than Yuki when he pulled his cute look. Sitting on Shuichi's lap, resting his head on the pink haired male's chest was Riku with light brown rounded ears and a very skinny tail with a light green coat, a white shirt, green pants, and a pink bowtie. He looked like he was sleeping until he yawned and turned his head so he looked at Haigha.

"I've never met the Queen of Hearts," he explained drowsily, "But she hurt my friends. That's why I joined… … …" He then fell back asleep on Shuichi's chest.

Haigha chuckled before walking over to him and carrying him off of Shuichi and into the seat beside the latter. "Dormouse, you don't sleep on other people without their permission," he told him. He then looked at everyone else. "As for me," he began, "It was during the queen's unbirthday party. She needed someone to sing her a happy unbirthday and Little March and I got the job. However the moment we began singing, she declared it to be the worst singing she had ever heard before yelling 'Off with his head! And his little stuffed friend too!'" He began to cry. "Singing is my life! If I'm not allowed to sing, I shouldn't even live!" Awws could be heard around. Even Shuichi awed in pity. Haigha wiped away his tears. "But yet I was able to live, for I had the Mad Hatter who encouraged me to stay alive. In fact, it is because of the Mad Hatter that we are all still here and with our heads still on our necks. It was the Mad Hatter that formed the Mad Tea Party and made us the people we are today." He did a cartwheel away from the table and landed beside a hat that appeared out of nowhere.

"You have all heard of a man pulling a long eared creature out of a hat," Haigha continued, "But have you ever heard of a long eared creature pulling a man out of a hat?" He reached his paws into the hat and just as he pulled something out, colourful smoke appeared. Haigha stood before them; his goofy expression changed into an evil like look. He smirked at them. "Ladies and gentlemen, the leader of the Mad Tea Party and the current Mad Hatter in Wonderland, the one and only Hatta!"

Shuichi knew this was it. He knew he had found the Mad Hatter, the one the Queen of Hearts was looking for; the one who Caterpillar believed could be the one that will help stop the war once and for all. He watched with the others as light shined through the smoke, revealing a silhouette in there. The pink haired boy felt like the silhouette was familiar in a way; he didn't know how but he did. It was only after the smoke cleared that he realized who the Mad Hatter was.

"Good day everyone!" said the Mad Hatter, "And as said many times over and over, welcome to the Mad Tea Party."

It was the man who saved his life; the Yuki look-a-like.

**Pinkshuchan: That's all for this chapter. I wanted to add more but I figured that if I did the chapter would be too long and everyone would get impatient. Don't worry, the next chapter will come out as soon as possible and you'll all see what happens next. Read and Review everyone!**


	9. Lonely Vagabonds

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hey everyone! Pinkshuchan here with the next chapter of Shuichi in Wonderland. Last chapter, it was revealed that the Mad Hatter was the Yuki look-a-like who saved Shuichi (not that there are anymore Yuki look-a-likes). What will happen now that Shuichi has found out who he is? Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 9

Lonely Vagabonds

Shuichi couldn't believe it; this guy was the Mad Hatter? He imagined the Mad Hatter to be someone different, not the Yuki look-a-like. But when Shuichi thought about it, the role actually suited him. It reminded them of his argument with Yuki before being kicked out of their apartment; Shuichi replied that Yuki fit the description he put on one of his characters, that he was 'Mad as a hatter'. If he could, the pink haired boy would smirk in thinking that he had figured Yuki's personality perfectly, but he couldn't. This person looked like Yuki but he wasn't really Yuki. And it made him yearn for home, wondering if he would see his real Yuki again.

Breaking Shuichi out of his thoughts, the Mad Hatter walked over to the table and sat in the head chair. He took off his hat and reached inside; pulling out what looked like a strategy of some kind. What was it? Shuichi was not sure. But he listened, curious as to what it had to be.

"You all already know this," the Mad Hatter began, "But as of this moment, we are no longer citizens to Wonderland according to the Queen of Hearts. We are but vagabonds; outlaws who the queen will stop at nothing to get our heads. We are the Merry Men of Wonderland who-!" The hatter was interrupted with someone that looked like a dog raising their hand. "What is it, even though you don't need to raise your hand? We're not at school."

"I thought we are supposed to be the Mad Tea Party!" he pointed out.

"We _are_ the Mad Tea Party," the Mad Hatter replied.

"So we _aren't_ the Merry Men of Wonderland?"

"No, we are."

"But then we aren't the Mad Tea Party."

This was not pleasing the hatter in the slightest. "We are!" he growled.

"But-!"

The hatter narrowed his eyes. "One more word and that slobbery tongue of yours won't say another word again. Understand?"

The dog kept silent. Shuichi sighed. This was _definitely_ like Yuki. Only he would give an insult like that if someone annoyed him to a bitter end. Usually, that annoyance would be targeted at Shuichi and it still was even to this day. It was weird seeing another person going through it, even though the person he was receiving it from wasn't really Yuki. He kept listening to the hatter's words.

"The point is that we are a group that has a grudge against the Queen of Hearts!" he pointed out bluntly, "Everyday we are growing, but we do not have enough here to create an army strong enough to defeat the queen. But I know that soon, we will be strong enough to defeat her. Everyone agree?"

Everyone cheered but a 'No!' could be heard out through the encouragement. Everyone looked over to the owner of the 'No!' who turned out to be a rat. The Mad Hatter stood up, jumped onto the table, stormed across, breaking plates and teacups as he stomped on them, and stood in front of the rat.

"No?" he repeated, "You have joined the Mad Tea Party because you want the Queen of Hearts killed and we would be saved from her torment, so why do you say that we cannot do it? Huh?"

The rat gulped. He knew the trouble he was in; the hatter could see it in his eyes. He hesitated to say anything but knew he would be in worse trouble if he didn't state his opinion. He took a deep breath and began explaining his thoughts. "It would be hard for many to want to disobey the queen. It's because many _don't_ want to lose their heads that they don't join us in the Mad Tea Party."

The Mad Hatter's visage did not change. His expression was monotonous and yet brought fear into the rat's eyes. The hatter then tilted his head, his expression never wavering. "Are you saying that there are not people that would join us and fight alongside us?" he asked, "Are you saying that everyone here in Wonderland is pathetic and a coward?"

The rodent was in deep trouble now. "Y-You see-!"

But before he could continue, the hatter snatched the rat's throat; took a firm grip of it, and lifted him up in the air. Everyone gasped at the sight. They knew the Mad Hatter was furious. When the latter was furious, no lives are ever spared. The Mad Hatter looked into those terrified eyes of his captive with his own cold sharp golden ones.

"You are full of shit, you know that?" the hatter growled, "Even though my family had been hunted by the Queen of Hearts for many years, I still had a perfect life. I lived in a place where I was loved by everyone in my family. Sure, I didn't have a lot of friends because I came from the family of Mad Hatters but I was still content with that life. But then, the queen ended up taking everything away from me; my family, my freedom, it was all taken away!" He dropped the rat. "But I won't have to suffer anymore. The Mad Tea Party will take care of her, and it will be _me_ that will say 'Off with your head!'" He began to laugh maniacally. Shuichi had to admit that he was scared, especially to see it come from the Yuki look-a-like. Once the hatter was done, he looked calmer. "But until then, we will wait until our army has grown stronger."

Shuichi watched as the Mad Hatter got off the table and turned in his direction. He smirked before walking around and heading over to the pink haired boy. It seemed like he saw him. He bowed the moment he reached Shuichi. "My my my," he chanted, "I never thought that I'd see you again."

The pink haired boy hesitated before nodding back. "Y-Yeah," he replied, "S-Same here Mr. Hatter."

The Mad Hatter shook his head. "Please, Mr. Hatter is my father. I would prefer it if you called me Hatta," He looked at the plate and teacup on the table beside Shuichi and eyed it suspiciously. "I see you have not touched your tea and cake."

Shuichi looked over at it before looking back. "Well… I wasn't really hungry."

It didn't seem like the Mad Hatter, who we will now refer to as Hatta, was convinced one bit. "Is it possible that we can talk in private? There are some things I want to know."

Shuichi nodded, not sure of what the hatter wanted. Hatta walked over to Haigha, who was mingling with Mock. He told the March Hare to watch over the party while he and Shuichi would talk. Once things were settled, Shuichi followed Hatta into the house and went in what looked like a library with shelves of books covering the walls and a small table with two chairs stood there. Hatta gestured for Shuichi to sit in one of the seats. Once the latter was seated, the hatter took his own seat and stared right at the pink haired boy. He then asked a question that caught Shuichi off guard.

"You are from the Otherworld, aren't you?"

The pink haired boy's eyes widened from the question. "How did you-!"

"I'm mad, I'm not stupid," he replied bluntly, "The question is why an Otherworld like you is here?"

"I'm here because there are some things that I want to know," said Shuichi, "I thought that you would be the right person to ask on this."

Hatta raised an eyebrow. "Is that really why you're here? You wouldn't really be a servant to the Queen of Hearts; finding the way into the Mad Tea Party hideout, and tell on her, would you?"

"Why the hell would I be working for that bitch?" Shuichi yelled as he stood up and slammed his palms onto the cold wooden table, "I'm here for my own personal reasons! For example, I want to hear about everything that is going on in this messed up world. There are so many questions and I want answers!"

That left the hatter speechless for a minute before he regained his smirk. "You want answers do you?" He stood up and circled the table and Shuichi. "Not everything has an answer you know."

Shuichi growled as he sat back down. "I know that! I mean I want to know things like how the war between the Mad Hatters and the Queens of Hearts started. I know that it started when your ancestor booed her but why exactly did he do such a thing?"

The hatter walked over to a shelf and pulled out a book before walking back to the table. He opened the book and flipped through the pages as he began explaining. "The Queens of Hearts are also known as the Queens of Wonderland," he began, "They all weren't sadistic bitches. Originally, the queens were great rulers; they were stern but showed passion to their subjects. With the queen as she was, Wonderland was a beautiful place to live in. Yes, there were executions at times but they were to provide order to the land. Of course, things must come to a change sometime.

"The final Queen of Hearts that followed as her ancestors did before her ended up having twin daughters, one with a love of red and one with a love of white. The daughter that loved red was named Kitty and the daughter that loved white was named Snowdrop. Both girls not only had a love for a different colour, but they also had two completely different personas. Kitty had an aggressive personality who loved to see things suffer. Everything and everyone she laid her hands on suffered and she loved to see them bleed. Snowdrop on the other hand was a sweet girl. While her sister loved to see people's pain and suffering, Snowdrop loved to see people's smiles and laughter. She would do whatever it took to see people smiling and forgetting any pains they had. Two different girls; it was sad to believe that they would have to fight for their mother's throne.

"Their mother had planned a tournament for her daughters to compete in for the throne and control of Wonderland. During the time, she gave her daughters names that they would go by; Kitty was known as the Red Queen and Snowdrop was known as the White Queen."

Upon hearing Red Queen and White Queen, Shuichi felt nostalgia. He knew he heard those names before but he forgot where. He decided to just forget about it and continued listening to the story.

"Determined to take the throne, Kitty the Red Queen began cheating during the tournament. She won, surprising everyone as they knew that everything done was mainly stuff Snowdrop the White Queen could do better. Snowdrop knew her sister had cheated and was determined to show everyone the truth, but Kitty knew this and as her first order she ordered her sister to be 'Off with her head!' The soldiers didn't know why the Red Queen would want her sister dead, but with her as queen, they couldn't argue with her. And I'm sure what happened next."

"That's so sad!" Shuichi cried, tears coming out of his eyes, "That's a terrible thing to do to your own sister."

"Yes but the Red Queen was determined to become the queen no matter what. Killing her own twin sister was nothing more than a small sacrifice to her," Hatta looked down at the table. "But the White Queen wasn't the only one who knew the Red Queen cheated. My ancestor, who was a friend of the White Queen's, also saw the cheating. He was the only one that stood up to the Red Queen, accusing her to not be the proper queen, as he believed like many others that the White Queen was the true queen. The others were too scared to admit it. That's how the Queens of Hearts and my ancestors the Mad Hatters began this war."

Hatta closed the book, stood up, carried the book back to its shelf and sat back down. "My ancestor passed down some information which passed down to everyone in my family about something he found out from a seer. Generation to generation, there will be Red Queens, but there will eventually be a White Queen born in the line, which will be the reincarnation of the White Queen in the past. When that White Queen comes, Wonderland will be saved. But the chance of a White Queen being born in a line of Red Queens is one in a million."

Shuichi was confused. With the motives he had, it seemed like the hatter wasn't the real enemy. But the pink haired boy still wondered if it was really true that he took the princess. He didn't know how to ask him. He didn't want to sound accusing. So then how? He decided to just say it. "Is there a possibility that the princess might've been another Red Queen?"

The hatter stared at him with wide eyes. "You know about the princess?" His eyes narrowed. "Are you sure you're not working for the Queen of Hearts?"

"Of course I'm not!" Shuichi cried, offended, "I heard about the princess by hearing things. I heard rumours that you were the one that took the princess but I'm not sure."

"Of course I never took the princess," said Hatta, "Why would I take her? I must confess that the thought had occurred in my mind many times but I never did take her."

"HATTA!"

Shuichi and Hatta looked at the door to see Haigha holding Little March and a big white bag. Worry was on the March Hare's face. "Hatta! Big emergency!" he cried, "Card soldiers have found the hideout and have most of the members of the Mad Tea Party."

"What?" That had caught Hatta by surprise. "How did they even know where the hideout was?"

"It doesn't matter!" said Haigha, "We need to go through the secret exit now!"

The Mad Hatter and the March Hare didn't spare a moment. Haigha ran to the one of the bookcases and pulled a book, which opened a door and ran in with the bag. Hatta grabbed Shuichi's hand and led him through before closing the door behind him. They moved through the tunnel and climbed up what looked like stairs before reaching a dead end. That dead end was actually another door which led them back into the forest. They walked through what would look like a hidden door on a tree before closing it.

Hatta sat on the ground and sighed. "We had many who were willing to fight in the Mad Tea Party. Now there are only three."

Haigha hated to see his friend upset. "Four Hatta!" he replied, "Little March is here as well! And I managed to snatch some more tea and cakes before it all happened." He opened up the bag only for another surprise to happen.

Sleeping in the bag was Dormouse, his head on the cake with the kettles of tea around him. The mouse woke up followed by a yawn. Although he woke up, his eyes still looked drowsy. "Is the party over?" he asked.

Hatta smirked. "Dormouse you sly bastard!" he chuckled, "You may always fall asleep when you shouldn't, but you sure get lucky when you're asleep. We have five here. But it's still not enough to defeat the Queen of Hearts."

Haigha nodded. "Yeah, that queen sure is a mean one! Her soldiers are scary. But these soldiers were weird; they looked like the queen's card soldiers but they had white masks on."

The hatter had to admit that sounded strange. "Why would card soldiers have white masks on?" he asked, "The Queen of Hearts hates white."

"Yes. Why indeed?"

Everyone jumped from hearing the mysterious voice. Shuichi knew he heard that voice somewhere before. He looked around to see where the voice came from but he found out who it was the moment he saw the floating grin above one of the tree branches.

"Kat!" he cried.

The rest of Kat appeared before them. "I'm impressed that you could point me out Shuichi," he replied, "It usually takes people hours to find out that it's me. I see that the Mad Hatter is now down to four fighting beside him. Do you guys want to hear a riddle?"

"No!" said Shuichi, "I still haven't figured out your first riddle; I don't want to hear another one."

"But this one is easier than the other one. I'm sure you might be able to figure this one out no problem." Shuichi kept trying to say no but it was no use. Kat went ahead with the riddle anyways.

We all yearn for love;

It's all we dream of.

It's not a black day,

That will help you find your way.

"That's harder than the last one!" Shuichi cried, "There can't be any answer for that!"

Kat wagged his finger at Shuichi. "You won't get your answers if you keep thinking like that. They should be able to come naturally to you." Without any warning, he disappeared until not even his grin could be seen.

Hatta crossed his arms as he stood beside Shuichi. "That Kat always likes to play around with people," He began walking away. "Let's go! We have to find another hiding spot." Shuichi didn't know what to do but decided to follow Hatta and the others. He had a strong feeling that if he followed them, he would be one step closer to returning home.

Far away from here, in a snowy plain, there was a castle that stood tall but wasn't as tall as the Queen of Hearts' palace. This was the home of the White Queen as she wandered through her greenhouse, walking through the pathways of white roses. When she reached a specific rose bush, she cut off one of the roses. She looked closely at it, noticing something dripping from the stem. She knew exactly what it was as she had seen it many times before. She then heard a voice behind her.

"Your Majesty," Jack's voice could be heard behind her, "What's wrong with that rose? The stem is bleeding."

The White Queen continued to stare at the stem. "This rose is bleeding because it knows the pain within a person's heart," she told him, "Upon feeling this person's pain, the rose begins to feel pain as well as its own way of crying. But unlike a person, who can cry from a tiny pinch, the rose has only one way to show its pain; by bleeding," She faced Jack, who looked at her in confusion, and she continued walking. "Jack, I want you to get Maximus ready for tomorrow."

"Maximus?" the knave asked, "You mean the silver horse in the stable?"

She nodded. "He must be prepared; he is going to accompany our new comrade."

"You mean _him_? You mean he actually agreed to fight for you?"

"He is not fighting for me," the White Queen explained, "We are merely fighting together for our own reasons. He is to help me and in return I am to help him."

Jack chuckled. "It still surprises me that you were able to convince him to fight alongside you. You may be a halfwit but you certainly-!" Before he could continue, the queen smacked him on the head. "What the hell was that for Your Majesty?"

"That's for calling your own queen a halfwit," she replied as she began walking backwards with her arms behind her back, "You know, if you keep insulting people like that you won't have very many friends. Makes me wonder why I keep you around," She gave a big grin when she saw Jack's expression. "I'm just kidding! You're a good guy Jack!"

The knave sighed. "Honestly Your Majesty, that's not something you should joke about."

The queen just giggled. She liked to play around with her knave. It was just too fun. She then heard a voice call out to her. She recognized it as soon as she saw violet heading her way.

"Miss Duchess!" she cried.

The Duchess shook her head. "My dear, how many times have I told you for you to call me Aunty?" she asked the queen a little harshly.

The White Queen blushed under her mask. "Yes, I'm sorry Aunty!" she giggled.

This brought a tiny smile on the other woman's face. "Look at you," she continued; sounding nicer, "You've grown up into a beautiful young woman, worthy of a perfect husband. Where is the little girl that always loved to sing and dance and bring smiles onto people's faces?"

"She's still here Aunty. She's just grown up," She looked back at Jack. "Jack?"

The knave realized what it was a bowed. "Yes Your Majesty. I'll get the horse ready for tomorrow."

He walked away, leaving the two ladies to walk and talk. They walked and talked until they reached one of the castle's balconies. The Duchess knew how much the White Queen loved to watch the view of her surroundings, even if there wasn't really anything to look at. Yet she still talked.

"You know my dear," the Duchess continued, "You really don't have to continue doing this. I understand what you want to do, but is it worth it?"

"It will be worth it once the Red Queen is gone," the White Queen replied, "Besides, it's not like I can return to the world I lived in before, and I'm happier with this life."

"But you are the White Queen!"

"The White Queen is nothing more than a title I gave myself," She gazed at the snowy wasteland before her. "I'm merely nothing more than a lonely vagabond; determined to find the person who can end my pain."

The Duchess wasn't sure how she could talk to the White Queen. It pained her to see the young woman in sorrow. She then had an idea to cheer the latter up. "I have an idea; why don't I go to the kitchen and bake us some strawberry tarts like I've done for you in the past."

This perked the White Queen up. She faced the Duchess, her eyes portraying the emotions her face couldn't under the mask. "Strawberry tarts? Really? My favourite! Oh yes Aunty! Strawberry tarts would be perfect. I can't have jam tomorrow and I certainly didn't have jam yesterday, but I can have jam today since it's the other day!"

A smile grew on the older woman's face. "Alright, I'll go make some strawberry tarts for us. I can't have my cook make them. Knowing him, he'll put a lot of pepper in like always, and strawberry tarts are the one thing that definitely doesn't need pepper." She was about to walk away until she heard the younger woman call her.

"Aunty," she spoke up, "You've had these days when Cheshire Kat disappears and you don't know where he is. Do you ever worry when you don't see him for a long time; like you think that he might've been killed somewhere?"

The Duchess' smile turned into a frown. "Yes, sometimes there are days when I worry that I may never see my Cheshire Kat again, but in my heart I tell myself that he would return to me someday. Why do you ask? Are you possibly thinking about _him_ again?"

The White Queen lowered her head. "It's hard not to," she replied, her voice quiet, "It's been so long since I've seen him and he's always been running. But I've now told myself that he can run or he can die; I will find him no matter what."

The older woman nodded before leaving the room. As she walked to the kitchen, she bumped into Jack, who had finished the preparations. They only looked at each other, conveying the conversation with their eyes. Jack knew full well what that meant. He sighed.

"She has a very unhealthy obsession over him, doesn't she?" he asked the Duchess.

"Well, what do you expect?" asked the Duchess, "She is a young woman deeply in love after all." She then walked away, heading into the kitchen to make some strawberry tarts for her and the White Queen.

The White Queen, who had not left the balcony, watched the sights in front of her. She knew _he_ was out there somewhere; she could feel it. Standing at the balcony, she began to sing a radiant tune of pain and content. As she sang, she was unaware that someone was watching her from the ground, feeling the emotions she felt through her song. The figure was hiding in the shadows, pulling something out of his pocket and looked at it. He held it close to his chest before pulling back deeper in the shadows, watching as the White Queen finished her song and walked back into the castle, ready to end the day.

**Pinkshuchan: Whew! I'm done! This is a long chapter; at least it felt that way. I bet people have lots of ideas with what's going on. One of the things I wanted to point out is that I have a horse named Maximus in the story. Yes, that's a Tangled reference. You'll learn more about him later and the 'comrade' that will be with him. What is your opinion on everything that happened in this chapter? Read and Review everyone!**HH


	10. Forest of Darkness

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hey everyone! It's Pinkshuchan! I see not a lot of people commented on the events that happened. That's a shame; I really wanted to hear people's thoughts. Oh well. Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 10

Forest of Darkness

'Is it just me or does the forest look darker?' Shuichi asked himself as he followed Hatta, Haigha, and Dormouse through the forest. Indeed the forest looked darker, but not because it was night-time. A dark sky covered the woods and the trees were bare without any leaves. The air was cold, making Shuichi shiver. The ground felt squishy with the mud all around, sticking to shoes as they walked. Indeed they weren't in this part of the forest before.

Haigha trembled at the realization of where they were, holding Little March in his arms tightly. "Hatta, why are we here?" he squeaked, "This is the Forest of Darkness! This is the forest in front of the tunnel that leads to Looking Glass Land; the most dangerous part of Wonderland, filled with monsters that can kill us with a glance."

That didn't seem to trouble Hatta. "Would you relax Haigha?" the hatter groaned, "I'm not heading this way to go into Looking Glass Land. There are a couple friends of mine that know what goes on in Wonderland. They should tell us what happened to the Mad Tea Party."

Shuichi, who heard the talk between hatter and hare, moved closer to them. "But with what Haigha has just said, if this forest is the pathway between your home and this 'Looking Glass Land', wouldn't the monsters move through here?"

Hatta just looked at the pink haired boy, his expression monotonous. "Don't worry. If any monsters do find their way here, my right hand man and I can take care of it."

Haigha began to blush. He was happy with what Hatta just said, even though really their relationship was not the best. "Hatta, you should've have," he chuckled, "I mean, we've had a difference and the fact that you think of me your right hand man is-!"

The hatter just stared at him. "What are you, a moron? You're not my right hand man."

"Then who is?"

"Dormouse."

Everyone looked over at Dormouse, who ended up falling asleep again leaning against a tree. Shuichi had to admit that the mouse looked adorable asleep against the tree. But Haigha felt offended with what Hatta said.

"If Dormouse is your right hand man, then what am I?"

Hatta smirked as he crossed his arms. "A monkey's uncle."

That didn't seem to make the hare feel any better. "That only happened once!" he cried, "You promised you would never mention it again."

"Funny, I don't remember promising that."

That was the last straw. Before Shuichi could even blink, the hatter and the hare began fighting. He began to panic; he didn't know what to do. He looked over at Dormouse, who was beginning to wake up. "Dormouse! Stop them!" he cried.

Dormouse drowsily looked over at his friends and companions. "Stop… Enough… Cut it out…" He then fell back asleep. Shuichi sighed. It seemed like it was up to him to set things straight. He stormed over towards them and pulled them away from each other.

"Will you both just stop?" he snapped at the hatter and the hare, "This isn't the time to be fighting. We need to find out what happened to the Mad Tea Party," He looked up at Hatta. "I don't understand why though. Haigha said that they were taken by the Queen of Hearts' card soldiers. If we know, then why do we need to go see these 'friends' of yours that are said to know?"

"It's true that Haigha said that the Mad Tea Party was taken away by card soldiers. But he also said that the card soldiers were wearing white masks. The Queen of Hearts hates white, so why would her own soldiers wear something to infuriate her even more? That is unless there is another player in this game; one that we as the Mad Tea Party are unknown about. I'm determined to find out what that is no matter what the cost."

They continued on forward until they ended up at what looked like a tiny house with a big sign. Shuichi looked up and read the sign. It said:

**Tweedle Brothers;**

**Anything we say, you have to pay.**

'That's a weird advertisement slogan!' Shuichi replied in his head. It made him curious why someone would want to make business here in this dark forest. The others didn't pay attention to it though and walked inside. The pink haired boy followed them in to even more of a surprise.

There wasn't really anything in the house. It was dark but Shuichi noticed that the whole house was empty. They seemed to be the only ones in. So then who were these friends Hatta talked about?

Hatta looked impatient. "I know you both are here!" he called, "It's not hard to tell your presence; you stink up the place!"

Without any awareness, the house began to shake. Everyone except for Hatta began to panic at what was happening. As for the hatter, he stood there perfectly calm, knowing full well what was happening. Suddenly, what looked like two balls bounced up from below the floor and stopped in front of them. The balls then transformed into two little round twin men wearing business suits, one wearing a red business suit and the other wearing a blue business suit. They looked over at Hatta and smiled.

"Well well," said the man in the red business suit, "If it isn't our good friend Hatta!"

"Good to see you Hatta," said the man in the blue business suit, "How has it been being incognito these past eight years?"

Hatta looked at them confused. "It hasn't been eight years, has it?"

"Ever since the Queen of Hearts accused you for kidnapping her daughter?" asked the man in red, "Yes, it's been eight years!"

"And since you disappeared eight years ago, the Queen of Hearts has grown uneasy," said the man in the blue, "She's really determined to have your head."

That got a chuckle out of the hatter. "No way in hell is that bitch going to get this head!" His expression dropped afterwards. "Back to the subject at hand. Dee, Dum, I need some information from you."

The man in red shook his head. "I'm sorry Hatta, but we've told before; we don't know where the princess is."

"That's not why I'm here."

"Then why are you here?" asked the man in blue.

"Just recently, my army, the Mad Tea Party, had been taken away from card soldiers. Normally, being card soldiers mean that they serve the Queen of Hearts. However, these card soldiers had the one thing that doesn't make them the Queen of Hearts'; white masks. They can't be hers since she hates white. Do you know anything about these soldiers?"

Both men smirked at each other. "We may know something," said the man in red, "Right Dum?"

"Absolutely right Dee," said the man in blue, "We may know something!"

Hatta was glad to hear that. "So what do you know?"

He received a wag of their index fingers in return. "Not so fast our dear hatter friend!" said the man in red, Dee.

"That's right!" said the man in blue, Dum, "Not so fast! Have you forgotten who we are? We are the ones that watch most if not all of Wonderland."

"We are the ones that know more information than the wisest owls."

"We are the Tweedle Brothers!" they replied in unison.

"I am Tweedle Dee!" said Dee.

"And I am Tweedle Dum!" said Dum.

"And we don't give away any of our information for free!" they spoke in unison again.

Hatta knew there was a catch. He sighed as he pulled a small bag out of his coat pocket. "Here! Here's your payment! Now what do you know about the card soldiers with white masks?"

The brothers smirked bigger when they saw the money in the bag. "Alright, we'll tell you!" they replied in unison once again.

"We heard from an unknown source that there are card soldiers roaming about wearing white masks," said Dee, "And like you said Hatta, they don't belong to the Queen of Hearts."

"Nope, these card soldiers belong to an enemy far greater than one we've ever heard of," Dum replied, "A woman only known as the White Queen."

Shuichi gasped. He remembered the White Queen. She was the one he saw that saved the one called the 'Knave of Hearts' from being executed. She couldn't really be evil, could she?

"The White Queen?" Hatta asked in disbelief, "Have you not read your history? The White Queen was a kind beautiful woman who was meant to be the true Queen of Hearts."

"We know our history Hatta," said Dee, "Fact is is that this woman called herself the White Queen. We don't believe she really is a White Queen."

"Yep, and it's believed that she has an evil plot to take over Wonderland and create even more of a mess than the Queen of Hearts herself has done," said Dum, "She figures that by kidnapping the Mad Tea Party, which is an army powerful enough to defeat the Queen of Hearts, she can hypnotize them into serving her and becoming her slaves. It's also believed that she had been looking for you for a long time."

"Me?" asked Hatta, "Why me?"

"Why, you're the leader of the Mad Tea Party, of course!" Dee replied, "And the most powerful member."

"If she has you then her army to destroy all of Wonderland will be unstoppable," said Dum, "And there's something we really need to tell you Hatta. We just remembered! There are rumours saying that one of the methods the White Queen wanted to use for you to join her is for her to set up the way for you to join her and destroy the Queen of Hearts; have you accused to be the one to kidnap the princess by kidnapping her herself."

Now Hatta was really angry. "You mean it was her that caused me all this misery for eight years? She is the one that had me chased down endlessly without much food or sleep? It's one thing to take the name of a holy queen and take away my army, but when someone messes with my life, that's a completely different story!" He stormed over to the twin brothers and clenched onto both their necks. "Where can I find her?"

"Can't… breathe!" the brothers cried. Hatta dropped them. Dee and Dum gasped for breath as they could've been killed by the hatter. "The White Queen lives in a castle beyond the Snow White Plains in Looking Glass Land." That was enough to convince Hatta to leave, Shuichi and the others following behind. The brothers sighed. "We convinced them to find the White Queen. Happy?"

The sound of heels headed towards them, revealing the Queen of Hearts with a smirk on her face. "You did excellent boys," she replied, handing them a bigger bag than what Hatta gave them, "Here's the extra payment to keep your mouths shut from telling them the truth." She then walked out of the house and moved to her hidden carriage where her husband was waiting for her along with a few card soldiers and a tied up White Rabbit.

The moment he saw her, the king walked over to her. "My dear, why did you pay the Tweedle Brothers to tell the Mad Hatter that the White Queen took our daughter? She didn't really take her did she?"

"Of course not!" the queen replied, "But the White Queen is a huge problem. She will do whatever it takes to dethrone me. With the Mad Hatter and the White Queen fighting each other, considering each other enemies, one of them will die or if lucky, both of them will kill each other. I kill two birds with one stone."

"But my dear," said the king, "What will happen it one or both of them survive?"

"If that happens I'll take care of them myself. If they think they can just take my throne away from me, they can think again," She walked over to the White Rabbit and pulled a fake smile. "Now, where did you say the way to the Otherworld was again?"

The White Rabbit shook in fear with the queen's questions. He was worried that with one mistake she would kill him, which she would. He gulped. "Th-The only way to get t-to the Otherworld is b-by going to the c-c-castle b-beyond the S-Snow White Plains i-in Looking Glass Land."

The queen began noticing something after the rabbit said that. "The Tweedle Brothers mentioned that was where the White Queen lived. I may need to change into my armour if I'm going to conquer the Otherworld." She and her men were about to leave until a card soldier that ran from the palace to her stopped right in front of her and tried catching his breath.

"Your Majesty," the card soldier gasped, "I ran over here… from the palace… because something terrible has happened," He took a deep breath. "The White Queen's soldiers… they made a surprise attack… and took the prisoners from the Mad Tea Party."

The soldier expected the queen to go into a rage and yell "Off with his head!" Instead, she just laughed, which scared everyone even more. "The White Queen took the Mad Tea Party?" she chuckled, "That makes it even more convincing to the Mad Hatter that she took them. That damn brat doesn't realize that she's done more hurt than peace. I should see her dead by the time we make it to the castle in Looking Glass Land. That would mean the only one we'll see alive is the Mad Hatter. Victory is in my grasp!" With help from her husband, she got into the carriage followed by her husband and the White Rabbit and they left the Forest of Darkness, heading back to the palace, preparing for the ultimate take over.

**Pinkshuchan: Wow! The Queen of Hearts has made it so Hatta and the White Queen will have to fight. What will happen next? Read and Review!**


	11. Knights

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hey this is Pinkshuchan! Last chapter, the Tweedle Brothers, Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, under payment of the Queen of Hearts, told Shuichi, Hatta, and the others a lie blaming the White Queen for the kidnapping of the Mad Tea Party and the Princess of Wonderland. What will happen now that that has happened? Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 11

Knights

Shuichi continued following Hatta, Haigha, and Dormouse through the Forest of Darkness only to head to the direction which Haigha said was the direction to Looking Glass Land. The hare was absolutely terrified when he saw the hatter heading in that direction, knowing what would happen if the latter went to Looking Glass Land, especially with the one known as the Red Knight guarding the way. Hatta told Haigha that he was too scared to go, and then the hatter would go and leave the hare behind. The hare of course didn't want to be left alone and ended up heading to Looking Glass Land with the others. Shuichi didn't know if it was getting closer to night-time or not because it seemed like the forest was becoming darker until it was almost impossible to see. It didn't even help when a fog began rolling in.

But then as the fog began clearing up, a sound of metal legs headed towards them. It started off as a silhouette but then revealed itself as a giant knight covered in black armour and a black helmet with a red feather. Shuichi didn't know who it was and why he was there but thought maybe this knight could help them. However, Hatta then pulled the pink haired boy away so he stood behind him. Haigha and even Dormouse, who was now fully awake instead of 'sleepwalking', were on full alert. The knight stopped in front of them.

"Who dares to move forward to the way into Looking Glass Land?" he questioned the group.

"My name is Hatta the Mad Hatter," Hatta replied, "My companions and I have business to attend to in Looking Glass Land. And may I ask why the Black Knight is here instead of the Red Knight who is supposed to be guarding this passageway?"

"I'm afraid the Red Knight got severely ill," said the Black Knight, "He's been diagnosed by the Greatreliablecactus Flu."

Haigha gasped. "Oh no! Not the Greatreliablecactus Flu!"

"Yes, the Greatreliablecactus Flu. Poor Red Knight; the moment you get hit with the disease, there's only a .00000001% chance of survival. He was a strong man able to kill many if not all that tried to get past him, even though he's an old man the age of 175 years now. It's a shame he will die with the notorious Greatreliablecactus Flu. It was decided that unless the Red Knight survives, which is unlikely for the poor guy, I will be in charge of guarding the way."

Shuichi didn't really understand most of the conversation that had been going on, but all he knew was that it didn't seem like the Black Knight taking over was a good thing on their part. And he was right when he heard Hatta silently curse.

"We may have had a chance if the Red Knight was still healthy and able to protect the way just by beating him fairly in a fight," he whispered to the others, "But this is the Black Knight; he's not as reasonable as the Red Knight. In fact if we're not careful, he can be really dangerous." But they could tell that they had no choice but to fight the Black Knight. They had to if they wanted to get to Looking Glass Land and make their way to the White Queen.

Hatta was the first to attack the Black Knight. When the ruthless knight wasn't looking, the hatter pulled out hidden daggers that were in his sleeves. He never used them unless he really had to and this was the perfect time to use them. He managed to stab the Black Knight in the arm but not after he knocked the hatter down. That was one down.

Haigha was the next to attempt fighting the Black Knight. He pulled out Little March and did his March Hare Beam. It didn't do anything to him though for he caught the pink stuffed rabbit and threw it back at the hare, knocking the latter down on top of the hatter. Two down.

Next was Dormouse. The Black Knight didn't feel like fighting the sleepy little mouse will be much of a challenge but went to beat him anyways. It surprised him though when Dormouse, who looked like he was sleeping standing up, pulled out a giant frying pan out of his pocket, which made Shuichi question how it could fit in the mouse's pocket in the first place, and smacked the Black Knight with it. The knight ended flying into the trees. It seemed like maybe Dormouse won but he was far from it. The Black Knight was fast returning to the group and managed to dodge Dormouse's next attack, hitting the mouse right in the gut and sending him flying to land on the others. Three were down.

And then there was Shuichi. He had absolutely nothing on him to help him against the Black Knight. So he just held his arms up in surrender with his head down in shame. The Black Knight laughed as he grabbed Shuichi and managed to tie his arms up really high up a tree so he was hanging 15 ft above the ground while the others were tied around another tree. It made the pink haired boy question where the Black Knight kept the rope. Once everyone was tied up, the knight went back to Shuichi with a hungry look in his eyes. Shuichi knew nothing good was going to come out of this.

"You three guys are really lucky," he told Hatta, Haigha, and Dormouse, "You have this cute girl accompanying you everywhere."

Shuichi was outraged. "I'm not a girl!" he screamed, "I'm a boy!"

"Girl, boy, it doesn't change a thing," He moved closer to the tied up boy. "I'm still going to eat you up."

To say that he was grossed out was an understatement. Shuichi was so completely disgusted just by the knight looking at him; he threw up in his mouth and ended up swallowing it. The Black Knight was moving closer and closer as he was almost about to ravish Shuichi good; the hatter, hare, and mouse unable to do anything to help.

But then the most surprising thing happened.

Before they could even blink, something knocked the Black Knight down to the ground. It looked like some kind of white flash, but what had caused it? Suddenly, the flash flew by them again followed by a voice yelling.

"What the hell are you doing?" the voice yelled, "You stupid horse! Stop! Stop right now! I mean it you damn horse, stop! You stop right now or I'll smack you! STOP!"

The white flash stopped to reveal a white horse with silver reins and a silver saddle. It was a surprise to see it had no rider, but they notice that when the horse stopped, another white flash flew past it and flew straight into a giant hole on the tree. The horse whinnied in what sounded like a laugh before trotting behind the tree facing the face of who was supposed to be his rider. The others could not see what was going on, but all they could hear was a one sided argument.

"Yeah, yeah," said the rider, "You've had your fun stupid horse. Now get me out of here!" All they could hear and partially see from the horse was him huffing before sitting down with a glare. It didn't make the rider feel better. "What do I have to do to get you to get me out of here?" The horse just grunted. The rider sighed. "Alright. I'm sorry I keep calling you a stupid horse," The horse growled. "And I'm sorry I threw away your lunch which was only a carrot. Come on, we got it back!" They could hear the horse slightly agreeing to the rider's statement. "Now will you… please… help me out?" It became silent. The rider sighed once again. "Please, Maximus?" After a couple minutes, they saw the rider pop out of the tree from the front which was his backside followed by an excruciating "OW!" The rider did not look pleased with how he was helped out. "You didn't have to hit my head with your hoof to get me out!" he yelled at the horse. The horse just did his whinny laugh again. The rider sighed before standing up.

His attire was very unusual. He was dressed completely in white armour, making him some sort of white knight. A white visor helmet with fake horse ears and a long white horse like mane covered the top half of his face, exposing only the lower part of his nose, his mouth, and his chin. A silver sword resting in its sheath attached to a white belt around his waist. The Black Knight was not pleased that this 'White Knight' foiled his plans.

"Do you mind?" he snapped at the intruder, "I was in the middle of something." The White Knight, who was brushing the wood chips of his armour, didn't look up at him. It almost seemed like the latter was ignoring the Black Knight. The Black Knight wasn't getting any happier. He was about to speak until the White Knight interrupted him.

"Whatever you were doing couldn't possibly be that important," he replied, "You don't look impressive enough to make what you were doing important."

"Of course I'm important!" the Black Knight got louder, "I'm the Black Knight! I'm the most powerful knight in all of Wonderland!"

"Never heard of you!" said the White Knight as he finished brushing the wood chips off his armour.

The Black Knight was off guard. "The Black Knight? I'm an invincible knight who never gets defeated? Many die before me?"

The White Knight, who had finished wiping the wood chips off, looked up at him. "I think I would've been warned about you if you were really a threat to me," he replied, "But I've been given no such warning so you're no threat."

Things were getting worse. "Listen here White Knight! You take back what you said right now or I will snap your body like a twig!"

"Oh, I'm so scared," the White Knight replied sarcastically. If it wasn't for the visor, they would also see his eyes roll. That was the last draw. Like a bull, he charged over to the White Knight, ready to take the latter's life. Shuichi was so scared for that poor White Knight, he clenched his eyes closed. He waited for the sound of death.

But it never came.

Shuichi opened one eye only to have both of them wide open, completely shocked with the scene in front of him. The Black Knight looked like he was twice as big as Hatta, but standing next to the White Knight, who Shuichi just realized was exactly the same height as the hatter, the Black Knight was actually around Dormouse's height. The Black Knight was still trying to charge into the White Knight, but the latter had his arm out in front, keeping the Black Knight at a distance from him. How was this possible? Hatta, Haigha, and Dormouse had trouble when fighting the Black Knight, but the White Knight didn't even have a scratch on him.

The Black Knight had enough. He stopped charging at the White Knight and appeared as though he was about to cry. "You're horrible!" he cried before running off into the forest. It didn't seem to interest the White Knight though, as he kept his natural bored expression. Hatta, Haigha, and Dormouse were shocked with what just happened. It was even more of a surprise that the rope holding them against the tree wasn't really all that time. The White Knight looked over to the three and his interest seemed to grow a bit.

He pointed to Hatta. "You must be the Mad Hatter!"

Hatta smirked. "So what if I am?"

The White Knight stopped pointing but kept his eyes on the hatter. "I was sent here by the White Queen to find you and bring you to her. You are to come with me."

The White Queen? Did this White Knight serve the White Queen? It seemed plausible. That didn't mean Hatta was going to surrender himself, even if the knight was slightly stronger than him. He pulled out what looked like a smoke bomb from out of his hat and slammed it to the ground, revealing smoke. The White Knight coughed from the sudden move. When the smoke disappeared, the remaining members of the Mad Tea Party were nowhere to be seen.

As soon as he saw them disappear, Shuichi was furious. They left him alone with the White Knight and he was still hanging on the tree. It didn't seem like he would be hanging for long though. Like how easily Hatta and the others got out from their bondage against the tree because of the weak rope, the rope holding Shuichi up was starting to break. The pink haired boy silently prayed that the rope wouldn't break. He knew that if it did, he was going to go through a lot of pain. But the rope did not listen to his pleas and broke. He was falling into a world of pain.

At least that was what he thought.

Before Shuichi hit the ground, the White Knight, who saw the pink haired boy falling, ran as fast as he could and managed to catch him. However, the ground around the tree was slippery with dew, causing the White Knight to slide with Shuichi in his arms. They slid through the forest until they hit a tree. The horse laughed at the knight once again, finding it entertaining for some reason. But it wasn't that entertaining for Shuichi and the White Knight.

Shuichi had his arms tight around the White Knight's neck while they were sliding. His head was resting on his armoured shoulder and he had a whiff of the knight's scent. It seemed so familiar. Where had he smelled this scent before? He pondered as the White Knight slowly moved his arms around Shuichi's waist, pulling him close. Normally, Shuichi would try to beat up anyone who tried to hold him like this and wasn't Yuki or any of his friends. But for some strange reason, he didn't want to do so with him. He didn't know why. But the weirdest thing was what he heard the knight whisper.

"Shuichi."

The pink haired boy's eyes widened at hearing his name from the stranger's lips. How could he have known? He wanted to pull away but his body was not responding. It was as if his subconscious wanted to keep hold of him, afraid of letting him go. Who was this White Knight?

Suddenly, Shuichi felt himself swooped out of the White Knight's arms and in the arms of another who happened to be swinging on a vine. The pink haired boy was unsure with what was going on until he heard a familiar voice.

"You didn't really think we would abandon you, did you?"

Shuichi looked up was so happy to see who it was. It was Hatta! They swung on the vine until they reached a cliff where Haigha and Dormouse were waiting. Hatta put Shuichi down before he looked back and sighed.

"I should've known that the White Queen would send someone to come get me to become her slave," he replied, "Looks like we have a bit of an obstacle making this trip a little hard."

Haigha raised his hand. "Hatta, we would be seeing the White Queen whether or not we let the White Knight take us. Why didn't we just let him take us so we can see her?"

Hatta stormed over to the hare and whacked him on the head. "You idiot! If we had let the White Knight take us we would be taken as prisoners and not as fighters. I want to save the rest of the Mad Tea Party, not end us in the same fate!" He looked back. "Back to the subject at hand. We don't want to be caught by the White Knight and forced to go to the White Queen as slaves. It will be difficult though since he seems to defy logic."

Shuichi, who had the White Knight in the brain, caught on to what Hatta said and felt he needed to correct it. "Actually, I think that the fact that you three couldn't defeat him when he was only Dormouse's height isn't quite logical."

Haigha and Dormouse looked confused. Hatta knew exactly what Shuichi was saying. "Shuichi let me teach you a quick lesson since you're from the Otherworld and this is your first and possibly your last time here in Wonderland. You probably already guessed that the ways of Wonderland are completely different from the ways of Wonderland," Shuichi nodded. "Well, it's the same as logic. The fact that the White Knight was able to defeat the Black Knight means that he defies Wonderland logic, meaning he can't be from Wonderland."

Shuichi lit up. "So you're saying that the White Knight may be from the Otherworld?"

"That or he's learned Otherworld logic and believes in that more than Wonderland logic. He has some Wonderland logic in him but not a lot."

"If that's the case then wouldn't that mean that I would be immune to a lot of Wonderland logic as well?"

"Your mind is complex Shuichi," Hatta replied, "To tell you the truth; you seem to have some Wonderland within your mind. It's a natural thing, especially if you believe in things that sound impossible in your world."

Shuichi lowered his head down. Things ended up becoming more confusing the farther into Wonderland he got. But there were also questions about the White Knight that troubled him. Hatta said that the knight may be from the Otherworld. If that was the case then the theory he had was possibly true. The White Knight knew his name. Not only that, he also had a familiar scent on him which Shuichi knew was the scent of cigarettes and cologne. But there was one more thing he wanted to test out before he considered it true.

Before the hatter could blink, Shuichi had his arms around him. The Mad Hatter stood there in shock with the sudden movement. Shuichi did this to move closer to Hatta and get a whiff of his scent. His face fell. It was the scent of cigarettes and cologne. His theory couldn't be correct. Everyone looked at him out of concern.

"Shuichi?" asked Haigha, "Are you okay?"

The pink haired boy looked at him before slowly nodding. He let go of Hatta and they ended up walking forward, knowing that they were getting closer to getting to Looking Glass Land. But one question couldn't leave Shuichi's mind.

Who was the White Knight?

**Pinkshuchan: Whew! Indeed, who is the White Knight? Though I think you guys already know and I think Shuichi still believes it a bit too. Our logic and Wonderland logic is confusing, isn't it? Whatever is to happen next? Please Read and Review everyone!**


	12. The Train Ride

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hey everyone! It's Pinkshuchan. Last chapter, Shuichi and the others were captured by the Black Knight and were saved by the White Knight who appears to defy Wonderland logic. For some unknown reason, Shuichi feels something about the White Knight, but he's not sure. What will happen next? All I know is that something awesome is going to happen here. There are a couple of characters from a different anime here in this chapter as guests; they won't play a major part, they'll just be here for humour purposes and to help Shuichi and the others a bit. Still, some of you may be excited to see them here. I don't own them; they belong to their respected owners. Anyways, here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 12

The Train Ride

On and on they walked and eventually they reached the tunnel said to lead to Looking Glass Land. Shuichi didn't see what was so great about this tunnel. It looked like an ordinary natural looking cave. Even going through the cave's tunnel, it was pretty ordinary. However, it was the view on the other side that had Shuichi lost of words.

On the other side of the tunnel was a valley filled with fresh green grass and radiant flowers of different colours and a clear blue sky above. It was the type of sight that you would yearn to frolic in. _This_ was the dangerous Looking Glass Land? It sure didn't look like it. Hatta took a deep breath and absorbed the fresh honey scent surrounding the field.

"We've finally made it," he sighed, "We're getting closer to reaching the White Queen. I can sense it. We have to keep going." Hatta managed to keep walking, but Shuichi, Haigha, and Dormouse stayed where they were.

"Hatta, do we have to walk another step?" asked Haigha, "We've been walking non-stop for hours now. Can't we take a break?"

The hatter stormed over to the hare. "Of course we can't!" Hatta snapped as he smacked Haigha right on the back of the head, "The longer it takes for us to reach the White Queen, the worse the conditions of the Mad Tea Party and the Princess of Wonderland's will be."

"Please Hatta," Shuichi spoke up, "I'm getting tired to. Isn't there a car or something we could ride in?"

Everyone stared at him in confusion. "What's a car?" asked Haigha.

The pink haired boy sighed. "Never mind."

But Hatta seemed to get what Shuichi was talking about. They would get tired walking all over the place and they don't even know where the Snow White Valley was. They could possibly die of exhaustion. What better way to travel than to ride in something. He looked over at Dormouse, who turned out to have collapsed on the floor asleep. The mouse never collapses on the ground unless he was devastatingly tired.

It was official; the majority couldn't walk any farther even if they wanted to.

Hatta began to think. He was a smart guy, he could figure out what to do. He then heard a sound from far away. It sounded like a…! That gave him an idea. "How would you guys feel about riding a train?"

Haigha began jumping with joy. "Oh boy!" he exclaimed, "A train sounds fun!" He pulled out Little March. "Don't you agree Little March?" The pink stuffed rabbit nodded its head.

Shuichi clasped his hands together. "Even better! I bet a train can get us there faster."

Dormouse lifted his head up. "A train?" he asked drowsily.

"I can hear one coming in this direction," the hatter explained, "If we can find the tracks, we can possibly catch it. That might mean we'll have to move more but it'll be worth it if we get that train."

The others didn't need to be told twice. They ran as fast as they could to reach that train, leaving Hatta behind. They didn't want to take another step, even though they were taking steps to get to what they're after to not take another step. They ran and ran on and on until they reached train tracks with a sign saying 'Train Stop". They found the train stop, but did they make it in time to catch the train?

They saw something moving on the tracks and stop right in front of them. Shuichi couldn't believe his eyes. Right in front of them was what looked like a pink subway train. Naturally he would say that a pink subway train above ground wouldn't make any sense, but then he remembered the first rule of Wonderland; nothing here makes sense.

"You guys find a seat," Hatta told the others. How did he manage to catch up with how fast the pink haired boy, the hare, and the mouse ran? "I'll get the tickets." Haigha and Dormouse did as instructed and went inside the train as Hatta left to get tickets. Shuichi was still confused but yet followed them in.

As least, he was about to follow them in when he heard a scream.

Where did it come from? All Shuichi knew was that it meant someone had to be in trouble. He knew he had to go rescue that person, but he worried what would happen if he missed the train. He debated whether to go or not. However, his kind heart and his curiosity on whom it could be won. He got off the train. Haigha ran to the door.

"Shuichi, where are you going?" he called out.

"Someone's in danger," Shuichi cried back as he ran off, "I have to help them."

"But what about the train?"

Shuichi didn't listen. He was already too far to hear anything coming from the train. He ran to where he could hear all the screams and ended up in an evergreen forest filled with fresh evergreen trees. He looked left and right, searching for the owner of the voice. It didn't take long for him to find them.

Two strange men dressed like a lion and a unicorn were standing in front of a tall tree, looking up at it. "Come on Cutie Pie," said the lion, "Come on down. We're not gonna hurt you."

"That's right Sugarkins," said the unicorn, "We only wanna eat you up."

Two pinecones were thrown onto their heads. "No way in hell am I going to come down!" cried a young male voice, "You can't make me!"

Shuichi managed to get a view of what was up in the tree. Although it was difficult, he could tell that it was a boy around Shuichi's age up there wearing a white blouse with short puffed sleeves and a red skirt fused together with a black corset and black slippers with red bows. It made the pink haired boy somewhat relieved that he wasn't the only guy in girls' clothing. But what stood out the most on the boy's outfit was the red hood and cape, hiding his face. It was like he was supposed to be Little Red Riding Hood or something.

But then Shuichi wondered; could this boy be Red Riding Hood? After all he did meet Humpty Dumpty, so it wouldn't be a surprise if this boy was really Red Riding Hood. But then if this boy was Red Riding Hood, why were a lion and a unicorn after him? Wouldn't it be a wolf?

"Come on babe!" the lion continued with his arms wide open, "Jump into my paws!"

The unicorn glared at the lion and smacked the paw closest to him. "Now wait just a minute there Lion!" snapped the unicorn, "Why should he jump into your paws? His beautiful soft skin would be damaged by those horrible claws of yours. He should jump into my hooves where nothing can damage his beauty."

The lion pushed the unicorn. "What do you mean? Your hooves won't do him any good! He'll be black and blue falling onto those rocks you call hooves. My paws feel like gentle clouds."

"HA! More like terrible thunderclouds that would scratch him continuously."

Before anyone could blink, the lion and the unicorn began fighting each other. Shuichi took this as his chance to help the boy get away from the aggressive creatures. The question is how. He looked around until something caught his eye. Beside the tree the boy was on was another tree with a bit of distance away. However, there was a branch smaller than the other branch that was so close to the boy's branch the edges were almost touching. Considering Shuichi's IQ, he believed that this unstable branch would be the perfect way to help the boy out of his predicament.

And so, Shuichi climbed up the tree and onto the branch across from the boy. He couldn't see the boy's face properly with the hood covering most of it, but he could tell the latter had to be terrified of the two fighting below him. Shuichi climbed forward and gave a small "Psssst!" The boy looked over at him; his hood perfectly hiding his face. Shuichi motioned at him to get on the other branch. The boy was hesitant, but was eventually convinced to climb onto Shuichi's branch.

That's when the problem got worse.

The branch was okay when Shuichi was on it. It was when both he and the boy got on the branch that it got worse. The branch wasn't strong enough to hold them both and in result, it snapped, causing both boys to fall into a bush directly below them. They were okay, but that only added another problem to the mix. The other problem started as soon as they got out of the bush.

"Hey! He finally came down!" the unicorn cried.

"Who's that with him?" asked the lion, "Probably another rival! Get him!"

Shuichi knew that they were in trouble now. Without the need to think about it, he took the boy's hand and they ran for it. On and on they ran through the forest. Shuichi was quick but it was hard to run faster than he was because of the boy. The lion and the unicorn were catching up. This was really bad. There had to be some way to get away from them.

But luckily for them, their way of rescue came for them. Storming through the forest was a rickety old wooden buggy with chestnut brown horses pulling the way. Driving the horse and buggy was the very person Shuichi was glad to see.

"I thought I told you to go onto the train, not get yourself in trouble!" Hatta called from on the carriage.

Shuichi just smiled. "It doesn't matter!" he cried back, "Take him!" He threw the boy onto the buggy in the seat behind Hatta. Then, with all of his speed, the pink haired boy managed to jump onto the buggy beside the hooded boy. Hatta got the horses to move faster so they were heading to the train. They could see Haigha waving at them to hurry. The horses moved faster. Hatta, Shuichi, and the hooded boy jumped off the buggy and began running to the train. They get inside. Hatta realizes that his hat fell off as he ran. He looks outside to see his hat right in front of the door. He manages to get his hat and pull it in before the doors close.

They were safe.

Shuichi tried to catch his breath, but the first thing that made him wonder was if the boy was okay. He walked over to him and placed his hand on his shoulder. "Are you okay?"

The boy looked up at Shuichi, his hood still covering his face, and nodded. "Yes, thank you," he replied, "I'm sorry you had to get involved."

The pink haired boy just smiled. "Don't worry about it! I've been through worse. Although I've never been chased by a lion and a unicorn before."

"The lion and the unicorn always fight," said Hatta, crossing his arms, "Although it's usually for inanimate objects like crowns and cakes and bread. Why would they fight over this one boy?"

His answer remained unanswered as the train conductor came out asking for tickets. Haigha, Dormouse, and Hatta handed in their tickets and Hatta made sure to hand Shuichi's ticket as well, but then there was the matter of the boy.

"Do you have your ticket?" he asked the boy.

The boy panicked. "I'm really sorry sir," he replied, "I was in such a hurry I forgot to get my ticket."

"Didn't get a ticket?" the conductor didn't look pleased; "There will be no stowaways on this train! Take off the hood and show us your face!"

The boy shook his head rapidly. "I don't think it's a good idea. Please don't!" But the conductor wouldn't listen. He was forcing the boy to take his hood off. However, the moment he got a glimpse of the boy's face, his eyes became hearts.

"On second thought," he began again, "Forget the ticket. Enjoy your ride on a train!" Without another word, the conductor went back to the front. The boy kept hold of his hood and pulled it back to where it was before the conductor tried pulling on it. Both Shuichi and Hatta were confused.

"What the hell just happened?" asked Hatta, "The conductor looked like he was about to throw you out the window. Why the change of heart?"

"I know why!" said Haigha, walking over to the boy, "He saw how beautiful this wonderful boy is!" He wrapped his arms around the boy. "But he can't have him! He's mine!"

The boy knew what was happening and tried to break free from the hare's grasp. "Let me go!"

Haigha wouldn't listen. He looked over at the boy and was about to lean forward to kiss him until the hare got a smack on the head by Hatta. The hatter pulled the hare away from the boy and was about to pummel him until the boy cried for him to stop.

"Please stop!" said the boy, "It's not his fault. It's the pheromones. Any men that get a glimpse of my face instantly and uncontrollably fall in love with me. Don't hurt him!"

Hatta normally wouldn't want to listen, but since he knew that Haigha wouldn't usually act that way, he didn't hurt his long eared companion. Instead, he just locked him in the next car. Shuichi looked over at the boy.

"So what did you mean by pheromones?" he asked, "It's something you have that causes anyone to fall in love with you?"

"Not anyone," the boy replied, "Mainly men, which really doesn't make any sense because I'M A GUY!"

Shuichi jumped a bit from the sudden outburst. "Well, I'm a guy too. That doesn't mean that I never had men fall for me. Just out of curiosity, what do you look like under that hood?"

The boy just clutched to his hood tightly. "I don't think that's a good idea. You already saw what happened to the conductor and your long eared friend. I don't want the same thing to happen to you."

Shuichi just smiled. "It's okay. I'm sure it won't affect me. Rarely anything here seems to affect me. I promise that I won't be falling for you."

The boy was hesitant to let his hood down, but yet there was a part of his heart that wanted to believe Shuichi's words to be true. He sighed. "Alright, but don't blame me when you end up like the others." He took off his hood.

And Shuichi was surprised.

It would be a lie to say that the boy didn't have a cute face because on the contrary, he did. Still, Shuichi couldn't get how his face would win the hearts of so many men. The boy had an ordinary young face with almost shoulder length chestnut brown hair. His big green eyes were staring at him in wonder with Shuichi's reaction.

Shuichi just tilted his head. "I admit you're cute but not enough for me to swoon over."

The boy's green eyes widened. "You mean you don't feel anything?"

"I don't either," said Hatta. Shuichi and the boy looked at him, the boy still shocked.

"You both don't feel anything?" he asked, "I know this may be a personal question but are you both… l-lovers or something?"

It was now Shuichi and Hatta whose eyes widened as well as a blush crawling on their faces. "O-Of course not!" said Shuichi, "I have a lover back home and sure, he and Hatta look alike but they aren't the same person."

"I don't have a lover," Hatta explained before lowering his head, "But… it would be a lie to say I don't have a love."

Shuichi looked over at the hatter in curiosity. "Hatta is actually in love with someone?"

Hatta blushed harder. "It was just some girl I knew from my past!" he snapped. He looked over at the boy. "Why the hell would you even ask this, if we have lovers or someone we love?"

The boy just lowered his head. "Well, I've done some experimenting before. At first it started as an accident, but after checking some things to make sure my theory was correct, I noticed that my pheromones don't affect people already in love. Still, it's hard to walk around with a lot of people that aren't in love, so I always wear this hood and cape that was made for me by my parents before they died to hide my face from anyone that could get affected."

The hatter began to think. "I remember hearing something like this back at the Country of Hearts. Twelve years ago, there was a boy that lived in the Country of Hearts who always unintentionally charmed the hearts of men. The only men that didn't seem to fall for the boy were men already in love. After a while, the boy started wearing a red hood and cape to cover his face from charming anymore men. It was said that the Queen of Hearts was furious with the amount of attention the boy had and in result she ordered him to be 'Off with his head!' The boy managed to escape her wrath with the sacrifice of his parents. To this day, because of the red hood and cape he wears to keep from charming anymore men, he was nicknamed 'Little Red Riding Hood'. Could you be…?"

"Could I be Little Red Riding Hood, you ask?" the boy asked, "Yes, it was the nickname I was given. But it's not my real name."

"What is your real name then?" asked Shuichi.

Before the boy could say anything, there was a shake on the train. At first they thought that it was just something like a pebble or a piece of wood that the train went over. But things didn't feel right. It felt more like something or someone was on the train. They kept hearing growls surrounding them. Hatta stood in defence while Shuichi and Little Red Riding Hood stood there in fear. It was after hearing the growls for a while the boy didn't feel anymore fear. In fact, he just became plain annoyed. Shuichi stared at him.

"What's wrong?" he asked. Little Red Riding Hood didn't answer. He just stood there with his arms crossed, glaring in the direction where he felt the voice would go to. The owner of the growls finally revealed himself to them. Shuichi knew that where there was Little Red Riding Hood, there was the Big Bad…

… Rabbit?

Standing there was a tall silver haired man with long white rabbit ears and sharp violet eyes wearing a smoky grey wolf suit. Shuichi had heard of a sheep in wolves' clothing, but a _rabbit_ in wolves' clothing? Little Red Riding Hood continued to glare at him.

"You stupid rabbit, what the hell do you think you're doing?" he growled at the rabbit man.

The rabbit just stared at him. "You're not impressed?" he asked in a calm way.

"Why the hell would I be impressed with a rabbit wearing a wolf suit?"

"Well, I can say the thing wolves always say when they're about to eat their dinner; I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll suck your-!"

Before the rabbit could continue, Little Red Riding Hood ran over to him and covered his mouth. "You stupid rabbit!" he snapped, "That's nothing something you should openly say in public! Besides, that's not even how it goes!"

The rabbit's face was still monotonous. "So you're _not_ impressed with the wolf suit."

"HELL NO!"

He sighed. "Oh well, I tried." He ripped the wolf suit off, including the wolf ears that wouldn't easily fit on top of his real rabbit ears, to reveal a plum coloured suit with an orange bowtie and black dress shoes and sat down in one of the train's seats. Shuichi and Hatta watched as Little Red Riding Hood yelled at the rabbit for 'Following him when he shouldn't' and 'Trusting him' and 'Just once he wanted to go to visit his brother without the rabbit stalking him'. It was as he was watching them argue that Shuichi noticed something.

"Hey!" Shuichi spoke to the rabbit, "You're a white rabbit, aren't you?"

The rabbit thought for a bit. "Am I a white rabbit?" he asked himself, "Hmm," He pulled down one of his ears to see. "Well, I do have long white ears," He stood up and looked behind him to see a cotton ball tail there. "And I do have a cute little tail."

Little Red Riding Hood growled. "You know damn well you're a rabbit Stupid Usagi!"

The rabbit just smirked. "Yes, I am a white rabbit," He bowed before Shuichi. "Akihiko Usagi at your service. I watched you save my beautiful Misaki from the lion and the unicorn and for that I thank you. The fact that you are not affected by his pheromones means that you are people I can trust not to touch my Misaki in any inappropriate way."

Little Red Riding Hood, or Misaki as we will now call him, glared at him. "What do you mean 'Your Misaki'? I'm not yours!"

"Yes yes. You keep telling yourself that," said Usagi. He looked back at Shuichi. "What can I do for you?"

Shuichi was glad that he found another white rabbit. Maybe he could help Shuichi get back home faster. "If you're a white rabbit, it means you know how to get to the Otherworld, right?"

"I know how," replied the rabbit, "But I can't access the way. It says in the Law of the White Rabbits that only one White Rabbit can have the power to use the Looking Glass to access the way into the Otherworld. I was supposed to be given the power to use it but I have two perfectly good reasons why I refused. One, the power is a huge responsibility and I don't see why I would best to handle such a thing. Two, I've got my hands full taking care of Misaki."

"WHAT?" Misaki snapped, "I'm sorry, but _I'm_ the one who constantly needs to take care of _you_, you lazy assed good for nothing rabbit!" Usagi chose to ignore that.

Shuichi was confused. "Wait, what's the Looking Glass?"

"The Looking Glass is a portal that leads to the Otherworld," the rabbit continued, "It is kept in a safe place where no one other than the white rabbits knows about."

"Where is it?"

"I can't tell you its exact location but I can tell you that it is somewhere inside a castle here in Looking Glass Land, thus the reason why this place is called 'Looking Glass Land'."

A castle? This caught Hatta's attention. "Could this castle possibly be somewhere past the Snow White Plains?" he asked.

The rabbit's eyes widened. "How do you know?"

"We are heading there," Hatta explained, "But for a completely different reason. We were told of a queen that was currently residing there who plans to throw the Queen of Hearts off her throne and create more anarchy for the people of Wonderland."

Usagi sat down and crossed his arms. "Well, I'm not so sure about that. Still, if what you say is true then-!"

His words were interrupted by another bump from the train, this one bigger than the last. Hatta sighed. "What else is trying to jump on this train? We already had the rabbit!"

The rabbit just stared at him. "What do you mean? I got on the train the same time as you. I won't explain how though but still."

That was a shock. If Usagi wasn't the one that made the bump before, then who did? Misaki screamed. "Look out there!"

Shuichi and Hatta ran to the window and couldn't believe their eyes. Outside chasing them and attacking the train was a dark grey coloured creature that looked like a dragon with a long neck and a bug like head. As it roared, Shuichi could see its sharp fangs with what looked like acid oozing out its mouth. To say he was scared was an understatement.

"W-What is that?" Shuichi cried.

"It's a Jabberwocky!" said Hatta; fear was evident in his voice as well.

"What the hell is a Jabberwocky?"

Shuichi asked too soon, for the Jabberwocky continued to attack the train. Everyone held tight to something, making sure they didn't fall and hurt themselves. But the Jabberwocky was determined to destroy the train. With one big whack from its tail, it smacked the train right off the tracks and sliding into a rock surrounded by trees. The Jabberwocky, satisfied with what it did, flew up and away into the deep clear blue sky until it couldn't be seen.

Shuichi opened his eyes to see himself lying on the grass a bit of distance from where the train crashed. He didn't know how he survived, but he wondered if everyone else was alright. He looked around to see where everyone else was. He saw Hatta walked over to him.

"Hey, you okay?" he asked, his expression cold yet worrisome. Shuichi nodded and accepted Hatta's hand to pull him up.

"Where are the others?" asked Shuichi.

His question was answered the moment he heard Haigha moaning. He walked over to them with his hand on his head. "Hey, what happened?"

They had to guess that Misaki's pheromones had worn off. Still, they couldn't risk the hare seeing the boy's face again and dealing with the pheromones once more. Shuichi was about to say something, but Hatta was ahead of him. He took off his hat and pulled a blindfold out before wrapping it over Haigha's eyes. The hare complained about being blindfolded but stopped after Hatta told him to. They looked around for a bit before they found Dormouse, who ended up stuck in one of the trees near the rock, and Misaki, who was stuck sitting in a stump. But then they wondered; where was Usagi?

"Usagi?" Misaki called out, "You better not be playing any games!" But it was silent. Shuichi could tell just by looking at the boy's face that he was starting to get a little worried. Misaki continued to call Usagi's name, hoping the rabbit will respond. But no response came. Tears ran down his cheeks. "Usagi! Usagi! Where are you?"

He heard a groan close to the train. Usagi staggered past the damaged train and began walking towards them. Once he saw everyone else he gave a small smile. "I never knew train rides could be so fun."

Misaki gasped at the sight of Usagi before storming over to him. Once close enough, he gave him a really good smack on the face. "You idiot!" he snapped, "What were you thinking? Do you have any idea how scared I was; that I thought that I was never going to see you again?" Tears rolled down his face harder.

Usagi saw the fear and hurt in Misaki's eyes and pulled him close for a tight embrace. "Misaki, it's okay. I'm right here. I'll never leave your side." Misaki, who was in his moment of weakness, couldn't bear to let go of the rabbit and instead held onto him just as tight. Shuichi watched as they held onto each other and felt an excruciating pain in his heart. Seeing the way Misaki and Usagi act towards each other vaguely reminded him of the times he had with Yuki. The yearning to see him again grew bigger.

With the train destroyed, they all decided to part ways. Usagi decided to take Misaki back home while Shuichi and the others were going to continue on their way to get to the castle. Before they parted, Usagi passed a roll of paper to Hatta.

"That map should help you to get to the castle," he told them, "Consider it repayment for helping Misaki." As so they parted, Shuichi never forgetting the story of Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Rabbit.

**Pinkshuchan: Well, that's the chapter. Guest staring in this chapter was Misaki and Usagi from Junjou Romantica. If you're wondering, I know that Usagi's real name is Akihiko Usami, but to be as a play of words I changed his last name to Usagi as he actually is supposed to be a rabbit. From writing this chapter, I have the urge to write a story about this version of Little Red Riding Hood staring Misaki and Usagi, but I'm going to wait until I finish Shuichi in Wonderland before I plan something like that. Read and Review!**


	13. Forgiveness

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hey everyone! Pinkshuchan here! Sorry I haven't been posting for any stories for a while. I've been busy, mostly with school and voice acting projects. Yes, I voice act. If any of you is curious, look up "Pinkshuchan" on Youtube and check out some things that I voice. Anyways, here is the next chapter of Shuichi in Wonderland. Enjoy!**

Chapter 13

Forgiveness

Shuichi and the others followed the map Akihiko Usagi gave them to follow in order to find their way to Snow White Valley and to find the castle where not only the White Queen was, but where the Looking Glass, Shuichi's only way home, was. However, as they travelled to find their destination, something far more important was happening around the rest of Wonderland.

The White Rabbit was still within the grasp of the Queen of Hearts, now dressed for battle. She wore a red chest plate that was heart shaped over her chest and a red skirt. Long red metal gloves covered her hands and arms and long red metal high heeled boots covered her legs. Her long brown hair was tied in a high ponytail so it wouldn't get into her face. The White Rabbit was sitting in the carriage along with the King and Queen of Hearts as they went on their way to reach Looking Glass Land. He wanted to escape; he _had_ to escape or all of Wonderland and the Otherworld would be doomed. But he couldn't. There were millions of card soldiers outside the carriage and he was nothing more than a meek little white rabbit. How could he possibly escape?

But he wasn't about to wonder for long.

The carriage went to a raging halt as something popped in front of them immediately. The queen poked her head out the window in fury. "What the hell is going on out there?" she yelled. When she looked at the front, her fury rose.

Card soldiers blocked their path. The Queen of Hearts wouldn't have considered them a threat if they were her own soldiers as she could order them to step aside or 'Off with their heads!' However, they weren't her card soldiers; her card soldiers never wear white masks over their faces.

They were some of the White Queen's soldiers.

The queen ordered some of her own soldiers to attack the soldiers who dared to interfere with her goal. The soldiers, terrified of their own queen, ran in the direction where the white masked soldiers were standing and attacked. The rebel soldiers defended themselves; keeping themselves safe from getting killed but not trying to kill the queen's soldiers. This was unusual; why would the rebels not actually attack? Little did they know that the rebels that were fighting were only decoys while the real threat hovered over the carriage. While the queen and king were watching the fight in front of them, Mock Turtle, along with Walrus and Carpenter, snuck up and grabbed the White Rabbit from the sunlight directly above him. The rabbit wanted to cry out for help but Mock covered his mouth with his paw. In a flash, they scurried out of there with White Rabbit in hand and the rebel cards got out of there as well.

The Queen of Hearts was proud of her victory against the rebels as they ran away; it took her a while to notice that the White Rabbit was no longer in the carriage. The moment she noticed, she screamed in complete anger.

"MY WHITE RABBIT IS GONE!" she yelled. She grabbed one of the carriage window curtains and held it tightly within her grasp, "Grr! That damn White Queen took the only thing to make me Queen of Everything. She will regret standing up to me."

Back with the White Rabbit, he was taken by members he remembered were part of the Mad Tea Party. Weren't they taken by the Queen of Hearts? No, he remembered hearing her talking about how they escaped with the help of the White Queen. Did they serve the White Queen now? If so, what about their loyalty to the Mad Hatter? These questions clouded his mind as they took him through a hidden shortcut to the castle where the White Queen was waiting for them. Upon reaching the walls, the White Rabbit recognized the castle.

This was the castle where the Looking Glass was hidden.

He began to fight being dragged inside. "No!" he cried, "I know what this place is! I know where we are! I won't open the way to the Otherworld to anyone no matter what you say!"

Mock, Walrus, and Carpenter continued dragging the White Rabbit until they stood in front of Jack and the White Queen. He kept crying, saying that he would never do anything for the White Queen no matter what she did to him, as he sat on the cold ground in front of them. Jack glared at him for thinking those things about the White Queen, who saved the rabbit from the Queen of Hearts; however the White Queen felt sorry for him. It pained her to see the White Rabbit in so much suffering to the point where it's hard for him to trust anyone. This only increased her hatred of the Queen of Hearts, who she insisted on calling 'the Red Queen'. She walked over to him and knelt down in front of him.

"It's okay my friend," she assured him, "You are not here because of your abilities as a white rabbit. Although I truthfully say I may need your powers in the future, for now I want nothing more than to protect you from the Red Queen so she cannot use your skills for her own selfish deeds."

The White Rabbit looked up at her. "Why would you do this?" he asked her, "How can I trust you to keep your word on this?"

"Because you are my friend. The Red Queen must not ever use the Looking Glass and get to the Otherworld. She and her power-hungry ways need to be wiped out from all of Wonderland, so there is nothing more than peace. A true queen understands that her people go before anything else. That was something you told me when I was younger."

He couldn't believe his long white ears. It was true that he said those words but…! "Who are you?" he whispered.

The White Queen lowered her head as she stood up. "I am nothing more than a shadow of the past," was all she replied with. She walked back to where Jack stood was almost about to pass him before stopping for a bit. "Jack, may you please escort Mr. Rabbit to his chambers? He must be tired from the worries he had spent with the Red Queen. As for you three, Mock, Walrus, and Carpenter, you three can also rest now that you helped me with bringing the White Rabbit here for safety." She walked away, leaving everyone to worry about the young woman.

To say that she was sad was an understatement. Her heart was filled with sorrow thinking about her past. She just wanted this war to end so she wouldn't have to suffer knowing that someone like the Red Queen was ruling Wonderland. She knew the pain everyone in Wonderland had to be feeling with her in charge; she was the one who suffered the most.

Her thoughts faded the moment she heard horseshoes galloping on the castle grounds following a loud whinny and a voice yelling "YOU STUPID HORSE! STOP!" The sounds stopped after a loud BAM! She ran in the direction of the sound to see a silver horse standing there with what looked like a smirk on its face while looking at the knight in white armour lying on the ground. The knight got up and glared at the horse. "What the hell are you trying to do; kill me?" The horse turned its head to the side before making a sound that almost sounded like 'Maybe'. The knight was about ready to storm at the horse before the White Queen ran to him in joy.

"White Knight!" she cried, "You're back!" Before the knight could get a chance to respond, the young woman had already wrapped her arms around him. The White Knight wasn't all that pleased with her sudden actions.

"Your Majesty, do you mind?" he growled at her.

The White Queen looked up at him before giggling. "I'm sorry," she replied, "I'm just so happy that you're back," She began looking around. "So did you bring _him_? Is he here? Is he finally here after all these years?"

The White Knight had to hold her down so she stayed on the ground and stopped with her rapid jumping. "Not quite Your Majesty," he explained, "Unfortunately, he escaped before I could get him to come along with me."

It didn't take long for the young woman's eyes to change from full of joy to completely depressed to the point where she was about to cry. She lowered her head and moved away from the knight. "I see," said the White Queen in sorrow, "So he wouldn't come with you."

The knight groaned with frustration. It was bad enough that he dealt with bipolar mood swings back where he came from but now he had to deal with them here. "Your Majesty, would you stop? I'm already dealing with my own frustration here; I don't need you adding to it."

The queen looked back at him. "But-!" She was interrupted as her eyes began to glow a light blue. The knight looked at her in confusion. He didn't know what was wrong with her. Just as quickly as her eyes began to glow, they returned to their natural amethyst colour. She gasped before she began to pace. "He's coming!"

"Who's coming?" asked the White Knight.

The White Queen didn't listen. She seemed too excited to listen. "He and his remaining allies! They're coming here! They will soon be in Snow White Valley!" She was laughing with joy and twirled around a pillar before she stopped and began to think. "But wait!" she replied, "His face! He didn't look pleased. Quite the opposite; he looked very angry. Not because of me I hope."

That didn't answer the knight's question. "Your Majesty, what is going on? How do you know all these things?"

The young woman looked over at him and giggled. "That's right! You don't know, don't you? You see, ever since I was little I had this gift. I had this ability to see the near future. I kept it a secret for a long time though; I never revealed it to anyone until the day I became known as the White Queen. It was how I found you in Snow White Valley lost and confused as to where you were."

It was great that she answered that bit, but another question formed in the White Knight's mind. "I have another question, although it isn't good to be too curious with everything going on."

"Curiosity is not a bad thing White Knight," said the White Queen, "Although it was because of my curiosity that I ended up in this predicament, I would've still been blinded from the truth about Wonderland if I hadn't followed it. So please White Knight, ask me whatever it is you want to know."

The White Knight took a deep breath. "Your Majesty, if you wouldn't mind me asking, what is it that makes you so infatuated with _him_? Out of everything you need to worry about, why do you focus most of your attention on _him_?"

The White Queen, with her face fallen, turned around so her back faced the knight. "There are many reasons why he is so important to me; more important than anything else going on. Some of these reasons are for reasons involving the war; some are more… personal reasons. But the main reason why I am determined to see him… is so I can ask for his forgiveness."

This questioned the White Knight. "His forgiveness?"

"Yes, his forgiveness. But it's not just his forgiveness I need to ask for; I need to ask for the forgiveness of everyone here in Wonderland. But _his_ is the most important, as it was _me_ who turned his life into hell the moment he met me," She turned around and faced the knight again. "But I'm not the only one who feels this way. You also have someone that you're searching for; someone who you wish to ask forgiveness to."

It was the White Knight's turn to lower his head. "The question is if he'll ever forgive me. Not just for the reason why he's trapped in this crazy place, but for all the suffering he had to endure just by being with me."

Although it couldn't be seen under her mask, the knight could tell that the young woman was smiling. She grabbed the reins of the silver horse and brought it to the White Knight. "You may believe that your heart is tainted with uncontrollable darkness White Knight," she began, "But that's not what I see. No matter how tainted your heart may be, it can still return to being as pure as snow." She placed the reins in the knight's hand. "There is something I need you to do White Knight," she continued, "With Maximus, I want you both to find them again. But this time, it's not to force them in my direction as they will be heading my way whether I ask you to get them or not. I want you to follow them and protect them. I can sense many dangers here in Looking Glass Land; the Jabberwocky feed on anything. Before I sent you to find them the first time, I gave you a sword. That is the Vorpal Sword, the only weapon in the universe that can slay a Jabberwocky."

"And by doing this, I will get what I asked from you, right?"

"Of course! I don't back down on my word. Now hurry, your beloved maiden in distress is waiting for you!"

The White Knight tried getting on the horse, but every single time he did he would fall off. He growled. "Dammit! This would be a lot easier if this was a car or a motorcycle." He finally got on the horse without falling off and began to ride out of the castle.

But not before the horse rose its backside so the knight's head was higher than the horse's and hit his head on the door frame.

"You damn horse!" his voice could be heard, "You did that on purpose."

The White Queen gave a slight chuckle before she walked to her own chambers in the castle. Once inside, she walked over to the balcony and looked up at the clear white sky. Everyday, she was filled with white. The white snow, the white sky, the white castle, most of her men dressed in white, herself dressed in white. It was time that she saw another colour that was once in her life.

Gold.

Gold hair, gold eyes, gold heart, she wanted to see all that again. If she could see gold before she had to die, it was good enough for her. She sighed and whispered words that came from her wondering heart.

"Are you still thinking of me after all these years, Hatta?"

**Pinkshuchan: Hehe! Yep, this chapter focused mostly on the White Queen. I know that this story is called Shuichi in Wonderland and not The White Queen in Wonderland, but the White Queen does play an important role in this story. As to why I did a chapter focusing on her and rarely on Shuichi, you will need to read on to find out. Read and Review!**


	14. Illusion of the Heart

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hey everyone! Pinkshuchan here! Last chapter, we got a view of the White Queen and her conversation with the White Knight and she asked him to follow Shuichi, Hatta, and the others and protect them. What does she want with them? More importantly, what does she want with Hatta? Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 14

Illusion of the Heart

Following the map that Akihiko Usagi gave them, Shuichi, Hatta, and the others made it to a strange looking forest. At least, it looked very strange to Shuichi. The trees in the forest looked like the type of trees you would see in a Dr. Seuss book; trees of unusual shapes and colours. The ground was covered by thick grass that was many different shades of green. The leaves of all the trees covered the sky and yet the forest looked so bright as if the sun was there directly above them.

Haigha tilted his head in wonder. "According to the map, it says that we are in the Forest of Illusion where anything can make you see things that you shouldn't really see. After the Forest of Illusion, we have to go through the Tunnel of Symphony and if we continue straight from there and avoid going through the Cave of Memories and the Lair of the Jabberwocky, we should be able to reach Snow White Valley and beyond there is Looking Glass Castle. If we keep going with as few stops as possible, we might make it there in a couple of days."

Shuichi groaned. "I can't wait another moment! I just want to get there as soon as possible so I can get home. I want to see Yuki again. I mean, looking at Hatta makes it seem like I'm seeing Yuki because they look the same but it's not the same. I want to be home to my Yuki!"

Hatta moved closer to the pink haired boy. "You've been mentioning this 'Yuki' a lot since you mentioned him to Little Red Riding Hood," he pointed out, "How great is this guy anyway?"

"Are you kidding? He's the most amazing guy I've ever known!" said Shuichi, "He's brave, strong, a little cruel at times, but he's mostly kind and gentle; he's the brilliant wonderful man I fell in love with. I can't live without him.

"That's why I need to get back home. There's so much there that I can't leave behind. My friends, my band, my beloved Yuki, my little Riku; they're way too important to me to abandon. I have to go back, I just…" Tears began to fall from violet eyes followed by soft sobs. "I may sound… selfish… and immature… b-but I just… this Wonderland is not _my_ wonderland. Oh, w-why did I have to l-let my curiosity get the best of me? I wouldn't even be here, m-missing my loved ones, s-struggling to find my way home, if I never f-followed the White Rabbit!"

This brought sorrow to the rest of the team just to see the pink haired boy cry. Haigha held Little March to him and began sobbing with Shuichi. Even Dormouse had become wide awake and began to cry. Hatta was the only one not crying, but that didn't mean he couldn't feel the pain Shuichi was feeling. He sighed before walking closer to the pink haired boy and patting him on the head.

"There, there, will you relax?" he replied in a harsh yet gentle tone, "We're on our way there and as soon as we reach the castle you can go home. So stop crying."

Shuichi looked up at Hatta with tear-filled eyes. Who would've guessed that the hatter would show some compassion? That or he was probably trying to shut the pink haired boy up. That was what Yuki always did. That wasn't helping him! He knew he had to calm down. The sooner he calmed down, the sooner he would get home. He dried his tears and smiled at Hatta, giving him a nod.

Hatta smirked. "Okay, then let's GO!" As he said go, he tripped over a tree root that rose up from the ground and fell down; his face caught in a mud puddle. Haigha began to laugh.

"HAHA! Nice one, Mr. Smooth!" he laughed so hard, he was ready to fall onto the floor.

Naturally, Hatta would glare at the hare before strangling him to death out of anger as soon as he got up. Instead, he just sat there as soon as he got up. His eyes were not their usual colour. Instead of their natural gold, his eyes multicoloured and swirling. He swayed back and forth as if he was intoxicated. Something was wrong.

Haigha and Dormouse, worried for their friend, slowly walked over to him. Shuichi just stood there, wondering what was going on. "Hatta?" asked Haigha, "Are you okay?"

"Say something Hatta…" said Dormouse as he began snoozing off again.

The hatter looked up at Dormouse and gave him a giant grin that was both amusing and creepy. "Why hello there Mickey Mouse!" he spoke to Dormouse as he began to stand, "It's good to see you!"

Everyone stared at him in confusion. Why did Hatta call Dormouse 'Mickey Mouse'? Shuichi looked over at Haigha. "What's going on?"

Haigha looked at the map before staring at it with widened eyes. "Oh dear! I was afraid of that! The mud of this place is toxic, but it doesn't poison your body, it poisons your mind, making you see things you shouldn't see. Thus the reason why this place is called 'the Forest of Illusion.'"

Hatta looked over at Haigha, ran over to him and shook his hand. "And it's nice to see you too Bugs Bunny!"

The hare looked offended; his eyes dark and sharp. "Who the hell are you calling a bunny? I'm a hare, there's a difference!"

The hatter didn't seem to listen as he glanced at Shuichi's direction. The moment Hatta saw the pink haired boy, his hypnotized eyes widened. Didn't look like this was going to be good. But the look in Hatta's eyes almost looked like they were about to cry.

"It's you," he whispered before walking over to Shuichi. The latter was backing away, worried about what Hatta was going to do. Before he knew it, he was in Hatta's arms; the hatter holding him tight.

"I've found you," he continued in soft sobs, "I've found you."

Shuichi didn't know why Hatta was crying. Why was Hatta repeating 'I've found you, I've found you'? But then he realized something. When they first met, Hatta said that Shuichi looked like someone he knew slightly. Did that mean that Shuichi also has a Wonderland counterpart? Could his Wonderland counterpart be someone important to Hatta?

Suddenly, both Shuichi and Hatta were splashed by something pink. It felt and tasted like water. But who splashed it and why? But then Shuichi heard coughing from beside him. Hatta was wiping away the water splashed on his face.

"What the hell just happened?" he snapped.

Shuichi sighed in relief. It seemed like Hatta was back to normal. But what did it? The water? He looked over to see Haigha and Dormouse with a bucket. Haigha laughed nervously while rubbing the back of his head.

"Sorry about that Hatta!" the hare apologized, "Looking at the map, it said that the only way you can cure someone from the Forest of Illusion's mud is to get them soaked by the water of the Forest of Illusion."

That confused Shuichi. "How does a map tell you how to cure illnesses? It's supposed to only tell you where you are and where you need to go?"

"Rule Number 1…" said Dormouse before falling back asleep.

Shuichi rolled his eyes. Of course that had to be the reason. Rule Number 1 was always the reason. It didn't matter the situation, Rule Number 1 was always the answer. Hatta looked a little confused.

"Can you explain to me what happened?" he yelled, "One moment after I fell into the mud, for some reason I saw Mickey Mouse and Bugs Bunny. The next moment as soon as you splashed me with water, I'm surrounded by you guys."

"It was the power of the mud here," said Shuichi, "For some reason it made you see things you shouldn't. You thought Dormouse was Mickey Mouse, you thought Haigha was Bugs Bunny-!"

"Which I don't understand why because I'm a hare, not a rabbit!" Haigha interrupted.

"And last of all," Shuichi continued, "You looked at me and kept crying 'I've found you, I've found you!'"

Hatta's expression changed by hearing that. It changed from angry to disappointed. "I see," he replied, "So she's not here. It was just an illusion made by the mud."

Shuichi walked over to him and placed his hand on the hatter's shoulder. "Are you alright?"

The hatter just stood there in silence before pushing Shuichi's hand away and continued walking. "We have to hurry and reach the castle. Who knows what the White Queen might be doing this very moment."

Shuichi looked up at the sky. It appeared that night had already set in. "Hatta! Look at the time!" he cried, "It's too dark to get there. We need to find a place to rest and continue on in the morning."

"I can't!" said Hatta, "Besides, I have been separated from time. It had abandoned me the moment I was cursed by the Queen of Hearts for accusingly kidnapping her daughter."

"Even if you can't feel time, I can. I really need to sleep."

Hatta looked over at Shuichi. He could see that the pink haired boy was having trouble keeping his eyes open. He looked around for a bit before sighing. "Fine," he agreed, "We'll stay in that cave until the morning. But that's the only time we're doing this, alright?"

Shuichi jumped for joy before nodding. He really needed a good sleep before he could continue, as much as he would want to get to Yuki. He didn't think Yuki would like the sight of an exhausted Shuichi. They walked over to the cave covered with green moss and pink flowers and got themselves comfortable. Haigha and Dormouse fell asleep right away, but it was Shuichi and Hatta that couldn't get themselves to sleep.

Shuichi stared at the hatter. "It's amazing how you can still be completely awake after everything that's happened."

Hatta looked back at the pink haired boy. "When you are cursed to forget about time, you also tend to forget things that happen as time goes by. Sleep is one of them, as because I am immune to anything involving time except for aging. Looking back, I don't really think I looked like this. I didn't look like the man I am now, but I looked more like a lost little boy who would believe anything. It all changed after I was accused."

"It doesn't mean time hates you Hatta," said Shuichi, "You at least age. You can still reach any age you want and past it like anyone else. It doesn't make you different," He closed his eyes. "Then again, everyone is different in their own way I guess."

"You're so much like her."

Shuichi opened his eyes again and looked back at Hatta who had a serious look on his face; far more serious than he had been. The pink haired boy was confused. "What do you mean? I'm so much like who?"

"A girl that I knew from my past," Hatta replied, "You both have the same facial features from your forehead to your chin. The rest of you is completely different, but I realize now that you also share the same personality as her."

"Is she the one you mistook me for under the influence of the Forest of Illusion's mud as well as the girl you said you were in love with that was from your past?"

Hatta nodded. "Yes, that's her. I don't know why, but she was the only one who could bring the good out of me. I still remember the day I first met her; she was dancing around the lake, I was staring at her from a distance. Then some monsters attacked her and I saved her. I was still a Mad Hatter In-Training when that happened, so because I had no hat on as hats were only for those who complete their training, she didn't know I was a Mad Hatter. Actually, even after she found out I was a Mad Hatter she didn't really care.

"Since that day when we first met, we always saw each other. However, it required me to be a little sneaky as I didn't want to be caught by the Queen of Hearts. But it was worth it to see _her_ face everyday.

"However one day, she disappeared into thin air. It was when I was out looking for her that the Queen of Hearts came and accused me of kidnapping her daughter. Because I had to be incognito, I couldn't go out to search for her. It was as I got older and more experienced to keep myself hidden while roaming through Wonderland that I started to search for her. But no matter where I went, I could never find her."

Shuichi just laid there in silence. He didn't really think that girl was important to the hatter. However, he understood how he felt. Like Hatta, Shuichi was also in a way trying to find Yuki, even though his main goal was home. But Hatta was already home, he was just searching for a girl that disappeared without a trace.

So as Shuichi was trying to fall asleep, Hatta moved away from his spot and walked over to the entrance. Before the pink haired boy had closed his eyes, falling into a peaceful sleep, he heard Hatta saying determined words that became engraved into Shuichi's head.

"No matter what happens to me, even if I spill blood where I stand, I will find you… … Alice."

**Pinkshuchan: Well, that was the chapter. What's going to happen? Will Hatta get reunited with this girl from his past? Will Shuichi manage to get home? Read and Review everyone!**


	15. Symphony of Separation

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hey guys, it's Pinkshuchan! It's been so long and I'm sorry about that, but I'm back. Last chapter, Shuichi and the others made it to the Forest of Illusion that caused Hatta to see things he shouldn't, including a girl he had not seen for a long time. What will happen now? Does Hatta's mysterious girlfriend play a part in this story? Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 15

Symphony of Separation

Fully rested and ready to continue, Shuichi and the others continued on their way through the Forest of Illusion until they were out of the forest and in front of a giant ice cave. According to the map, that was the Tunnel of Symphony, an ice tunnel where all you hear is music. Shuichi thought it was strange yet interesting, considering how he loved music. They walked in, wondering what sort of things would await them inside.

The moment they walked in, things began to feel a little weird. When they walked in, it was silent. Nothing could be heard, not even the sounds of their own footsteps. But then, as they continued onwards, a bang of music began. The music was something similar to Beethoven's 5th Symphony. Shuichi tried to ask why it was playing but no sound could come out of his mouth. He even tried to yell over the loud music, but it was as if his voice was drowned in the music. Suddenly, as if by instinct, they all looked behind them to see what looked like an ice mallet ready to fall and smash them. Shuichi and the others jumped out of the way only to land on solid blue ice. At first, Shuichi was having a hard time keeping his balance. But then, his balance was maintained. When he looked down to see the reason behind it, it appeared that his shoes were magically transformed into a skate version of them.

'This makes even less sense than everything else that's happened to me this far,' was what Shuichi thought. What shocked him was that Hatta, Haigha, and Dormouse had their feet turned into skate version as well and they weren't as surprised as him. Instead, they were skating around without a care in the world. Shuichi knew that he would never be able to understand these remaining members of the Mad Tea Party at all. He began to skate like them and followed them through the tunnel.

They didn't realize though that they were in more trouble than they thought.

As they moved forward, they were unaware of pieces of ice forming to look like soldier ice sculptures holding ice halberds. The soldiers stretched their arms, having been awoken by their slumber and saw Shuichi and the others. They followed after them, having an advantage considering no sound aside from the music playing in the background could be heard.

But Hatta had a really bad feeling. He looked behind him and saw the statues. He stopped everyone and pointed behind them, making them all turn around and see the soldiers. If it weren't for the cave and the music blaring over any other sound inside, you could hear them screaming their heads off as they tried to get away.

They were fast, but the soldiers were getting faster. Shuichi tried skating as fast as he could but was surprised to see that the hatter, the hare, and the mouse were skating beautifully as if they weren't worried. Still, that didn't mean the pink haired boy could forget about the ice soldiers chasing after them.

What he and others didn't know was that they were spotted by the White Knight and his horse. The knight was riding his horse on one of the ledges, looking down at the ice. The moment he saw Shuichi and the fact that the ice soldiers were chasing after him, he began to panic. He got the horse's attention and showed him what was going on. He was aware of the effects of the Tunnel of Symphony beforehand. The horse looked down and began running forward and through a small hole without warning the White Knight about it, and resulted with the knight getting hit in the face by the wall above the hole.

Shuichi and the others were still skating for their lives though. They skated through the cave until they came across two tunnels. Shuichi took one while the others went through the other one. All the soldiers followed the others, leaving the pink haired boy alone.

For some reason, Shuichi felt more scared alone without anyone around him then when he was being chased by the ice soldiers. He skated through the tunnel, calling everyone's names although it couldn't be heard over the music, even though the music itself was quiet.

Suddenly, everyone jumped out of nowhere and bumped into Shuichi. The impact caused them to slide to a wall, only to be cornered by the ice soldiers. Haigha silently pleaded for the soldiers to let them go but the soldiers all shook their heads and raised their halberds at them.

Once again, it didn't occur to them that they would be watched by the White Knight who finally regained himself after what happened. He found them again but was not sure how to help them. After all, they were all the way on the ice and he was up on a very steep hill that would be too dangerous to go down. The horse on the other hand didn't think so. He looked at the knight and pointed downwards with his hoof. The White Knight shook his head rapidly. The horse shook his head in question to what the knight really wanted. The knight kept shaking his head.

But the horse nodded and gave a running start before jumping off with the knight on his back and slid down the hill. He gave his rider a little push with his backside, causing him to fly off the horse. At first, he was screaming in fear even though his voice could not be heard, but then he gained more confidence when he saw that he was flying towards the ice soldiers. He pulled out his sword and with amazing force did he manage to slice them all in half. His feet touched the ground with grace and he began to twirl as he went after all his enemies.

Shuichi, Hatta, and the others gaped in awe the moment they saw the White Knight slashing through all the ice soldiers. But it didn't last for long. As far as they knew, the knight was their enemy, forcing them to become prisoners of the White Queen. The moment they had their chance they bolted out of there. It didn't take long after he got them all did the knight notice them getting away. He cried for them to stop but his voice could not be heard over the music. He ran to his horse who had already reached the bottom of the hill and chased after them.

On and on this chase went. The knight needed to catch up to them but the group just kept skating. This continued until Hatta had an idea. He grabbed Shuichi, Haigha, and Dormouse, and began making a sharp left turn. This managed to work, as they made it through a tricky tunnel to just skate through while going really fast, and lost the knight in the other direction.

However, their troubles were far from over.

They continued to skate until they saw the ceiling broken off the tunnel where they were in. That type of force could only be done by one monster and they were afraid that that was it.

It was the Jabberwocky.

The Jabberwocky gave a roar before smashing its claws into the ground. The force knocked them down and caused the tunnel to cave in, separating Shuichi from the others. Yet they still continued to try to get out of there. Although separated, both Hatta's group and Shuichi found tunnels to help them out of the Tunnel of Symphony. Unfortunately, the tunnels went separate ways, so they still couldn't get reunited.

Once out and after the music finally stopped, Hatta and the others ran to the forest in front of them and tried to catch their breath. The entire event that happened before them tired them out, but not enough for them to rest long. Haigha looked over at Hatta to see that the hatter did not look too pleased that they were safe. He walked over at him and hesitantly placed his paw on his friend's shoulder.

"Hatta? Are you okay?" he asked silently.

The hatter would not move. Although he was relived that they managed to escape not only the ice soldiers but the White Knight and the Jabberwocky as well, he was ashamed of himself for not being able to save Shuichi. No doubt the pink haired boy might've been caught by the White Knight, or worse, eaten by the Jabberwocky. His body trembled in shame. More and more people that got close to him ended up having terrible disasters befalling them. If this continued on, he worried that Haigha and Dormouse would also become unfortunate to survive near him. He knew he had to kill the White Queen fast and save the princess and the Mad Tea Party. Then rid the Queen of Hearts from Wonderland. It was after then that Hatta would do one last deed and protect Wonderland and take his own life.

He turned around and looked at Haigha, pretending to act like he wasn't in emotional pain and like his cold hearted self. "What the hell are you doing you idiot?" he asked, "We have to get to Snow White Valley and to Looking Glass Castle fast!"

The hare gave a nervous laugh. "Yeah… about that Hatta… I… kinda lost the map while we were being chased." Haigha expected that he would be killed from that mistake. Instead, finally reaching his limit, the hatter gave a loud scream before smashing his fist to one of the trees; all hope was lost.

"Shit!" Hatta cursed, "Why the hell does this have to happen? Why?" He fell to his knees and began to cry, his anger growing with every sentence he spoke. "Everything that gets close to me meets an uncontrollable doom. I am cursed by the very home I live in. Why must I suffer like this? Because I'm a Mad Hatter? That it? I NEVER ASKED FOR THIS DAMN LIFE!"

Both the hare and the mouse were in pain watching their friend and leader suffer like this. They wanted to do something to cheer him up; something, anything. But what could they do? They didn't know how to reach Snow White Valley and Looking Glass Castle without the map. They lowered their heads, wondering if this was the end of their journey.

But then they heard a meow behind them.

Everyone turned around to see a white cat the size of a panther with big blue eyes looking over at them. They didn't understand what it wanted. Why did it meow at them? The cat turned around so it didn't look at them but gave a sign indicating them to follow it. Haigha gave a loud cheer while Dormouse gave a tired cheer; both happy that they have a lead. But Hatta was confused. He had never seen that giant cat before yet for some reason it looked familiar. He had a feeling; maybe this cat would lead them to the White Queen. And so, the remaining members of the Mad Tea Party continued on their way to Looking Glass Castle and to a desperately waiting White Queen who was unaware of what was going to happen the moment they reach her.

**Pinkshuchan: Well, that's the chapter. What will happen after Hatta and the others reach the castle? And what happened to Shuichi? Read and Review!**


	16. Memory of the Hat and the Heart

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hello, this is Pinkshuchan! Really sorry it's been so long. I've been having severe Writer's Block and I've been busy with another project. Last chapter, Shuichi and the others went through the Tunnel of Symphony and were chased by ice soldiers and the White Knight, only to get separated because of the Jabberwocky. Hatta, Haigha, and Dormouse, greeted by a big white cat, hoping that it would lead them to the White Queen. But what happened to Shuichi? Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 16

Memory of the Hat and the Heart

Hatta, Haigha, and Dormouse follow the giant white cat in hopes that they find the White Queen and bring her down for everything she had done; kidnapping the Princess of Wonderland which ruined Hatta's life, taking away everyone in the Mad Tea Party, and now for whatever they believed had happened to Shuichi. Little did they know that not only was Shuichi perfectly fine, he was no where near the White Queen or any of her men.

Shuichi, who went through a different tunnel after being separated by Hatta and the others due to the Jabberwocky, ended up siding down a slide made entirely out of ice and fall into a big soft snow pile. It took him a while after falling in to get his head out. He looked around. Where was he? More importantly, where were Hatta and the others?

He began to worry. Once again, he was left alone. Wonderland sure liked to do that to him. He was unsure of what to do. Even if he saw snow, he wasn't sure if he was anywhere near Snow White Valley and the Looking Glass Castle. He hoped that maybe, Hatta and the others would be close by and maybe calling them might indicate where he was.

"Hatta!" Shuichi cried as he began to walk, "Haigha! Dormouse! Where are you?! HATTA!" But it was no use. No matter how many times he called them, the only sound that could be heard was the whistling cold wind and the echo of his own voice. He was lost.

Shuichi sat down to the ground in depression. "What am I going to do now?" he asked himself, not expecting to get a response.

"What indeed?"

The pink haired boy jumped at the sudden response. He looked around and saw a tree covered in snow. However, he knew that trees didn't have big grins. "Kat!"

The one just named had the rest of him appear. "I am greatly impressed Shuichi," he responded, "That's twice you spotted me with only a grin after I call out to you. You're far more interesting than any Otherworlder I've ever known."

Shuichi walked over to him. "Kat, what do you know about this place?" he asked in hope, "Do you know how to get to Snow White Valley and the Looking Glass Castle from here? Which way do I need to go?"

From the branch he was sitting on, the cat began hanging upside down. "Have you answered the riddles I gave out to you?"

"How can I? They're too hard to figure out!" he cried.

Kat tsked at him. "My dear Shuichi, if you keep thinking like that, you'll never figure out the riddles," He turned right side up. "But I think I know what can help you."

Shuichi groaned, placing his hand on his forehead. "Not another riddle!"

"No, this time it's not a riddle," Kat disappeared, but his footprints could be seen on the snow, indicating where Shuichi needed to go. The pink haired boy was reluctant to go, but considering he had no where else to go, he decided to follow the footprints. The footprints led him to what looked like a giant building made of ice. It almost looked like the Tunnel of Symphony, but when Shuichi accidentally touched a wall, he noticed that the wall was not wet, indicating that it was not ice. He took a closer look, surprised of what it was.

"It's crystal!" he cried out.

"Yes," Kat replied as he reappeared behind Shuichi, not failing to give the boy a fright, "This here is the Cave of Memories. Anything from the past that you wish to see, you shall see it. It doesn't have to be your memory, as long as you know what memory from someone else you wish to see and even if you aren't the one that calls this memory as long as you are in the Cave of Memories when the person that calls the memory calls it you can still see the memory. Do you understand?"

Shuichi was about to say yes, but after going through everything in his head, he ended shaking his head no. Kat sighed. "Well, sometimes the best way to understand it is to show it." He walked inside with Shuichi following him.

There was not a lot in the Cave of Memories. All it was was just a large room made to look small with all the crystals around. Shuichi followed Kat in, only to see crystal doors close behind them. This, of course, frightened him, as he knew barely anything in Wonderland other than the things everyone had showed him. Nonetheless, he continued following Kat in, hoping that whatever he was getting himself into was not going to get himself into more trouble.

_They are things meant to be,_

_If not what you please._

_What do you wish to see,_

_In the Cave of Memories?_

Shuichi jumped at the sound of the sudden booming voice. Kat didn't seem to care, as he kept his big grin. "Oh, Cave of Memories," he called out to the voice, "It is not that hard to start. We wish to see the Memory of the Hat and the Heart."

The entire room grew bright to the point of being blinded. Shuichi tried to cover his eyes with his arms. When the light died down, he lowered his arms and was lost on words of the sight before him. No longer did he see a giant room filled with crystals. It didn't look like he was in a room at all.

Before him was a beautiful big yet familiar looking garden. The grass was the brightest green he had ever seen even under the setting sun revealing that it was sunset. There was a lily pond and silver pillars and lots of flowers, especially roses on bushes that looked like suits on cards. His confusion changed to horror when he realized where he was.

Kat appeared beside him and looked at him with curious eyes; his grin never wavering. "What is wrong?" he asked.

Shuichi jumped once again before staring at him in shock. "Why are you talking normally?" he whispered, "In fact, why aren't we hiding? Isn't this the Queen of Hearts' palace's garden?"

"It looks like it," said Kat, "But it isn't. We are still in the Cave of Memories. We have not moved at all. Touch one of the bushes and see for yourself."

The pink haired boy was hesitant to do what the cat was suggesting. But, like always, his curiosity always had to get the better of him. He walked over to the club shaped bush and touched it. He stared at it. It didn't feel like a bush with rough leaves and sharp thorns. Instead, it felt smooth and almost chilling, like the crystal he accidentally touched when he first got to the Cave of Memories.

"We're still in the very room we stepped in?" Shuichi turned and asked.

The cat nodded. "Yes," he replied, "I brought you here to the Cave of Memories so I can show you a memory from the past. Those you shall see in this memory are shadows of the past that can neither see nor hear you. They will act exactly what happened in this memory. I guess you could say that I'm giving you a hint."

"But Kat," said Shuichi, walking back towards him, "I may have seen this garden once and been inside it the other time, but other than those moments those were not in my memories and I remember the days to be bright afternoons, not sunsets."

Kat shook his head. "Who said that this was from _your_ memory?"

"Yours then?"

"Not mine! This is the Memory of the Hat and the Heart."

This was not clearing things up for Shuichi. "What is the Memory of the Hat and the Heart? How does that help me figure out the riddles you gave me?"

Kat tsked him once again. "If I told you the answer, then that would be cheating. Every wise man, or wise cat in my case, knows that the best way to know the answer to all your questions would be to figure them out for yourself. Well, I wish you luck!"

Before the pink haired boy could say anything, Kat disappeared. Shuichi groaned. He figured the cat had to still be in the Cave of Memories or the memory would've ended by now. But it didn't seem like the cat would be talking anymore about the subject with him. The only thing to do would be to watch the memory and figure out the riddles.

He heard footsteps coming his way. Shuichi felt like hiding but he remembered Kat's words. Those he shall see in this memory will neither see nor hear him. He didn't know whether or not to really trust the cat, but he was proved that they were still in the Cave of Memories and _not_ in the Queen of Hearts' palace garden. He stood there, waiting for who was meant to come here. He stood there, willing to watch what happens and yet terrified that he would, indeed, be seen.

Walking in his direction were both the King and Queen of Hearts. Shuichi wasn't sure if it was just him or not but for some reason, they appeared to look… younger. Exactly how far in the past was he looking at? The king and queen looked like they were enjoying each other's company. But what was the point of this?

But then, something small and white began running towards them and tripped the queen. The king helped her up, but that didn't stop her fury. The white thing ran back to her and was going berserk on her. Exactly what was going on?

"Dinah!" a young voice called out.

Shuichi turned to the direction of the voice. It was a young girl around the age of 12 or 13 wearing a dress that looked like the dress from Disney's Snow White but with a different colour scheme and without the collar. It was a dress with a red puffed sleeved top with black and a long white skirt. Black flats with red hearts covered her feet. A black bow rested in her long blond hair. Her big violet eyes stared at the white thing and ran over to the queen to pull it away from her. Getting a better look at it, Shuichi realized that it was a small white kitten with big blue eyes. But despite what it was, that did not change the fury in the queen's eyes.

The girl, after knowing that the kitten was okay, looked up at the queen and began looking worried. "I'm really sorry," said the girl, "Dinah was really scared because she heard something that sounded like a wolf's howl."

The queen still looked angry, but it was toned down a bit. She sighed as she shook her head. "How many times must I tell you that there are no wolves in the Country of the Hearts? They can only be found in Looking Glass Land. It is impossible for them to be here. Anymore trouble from that cat and it's off with its head."

The girl gasped. "Please, Dinah didn't mean to do it! Honest! Please don't have her off with her head, Mother!"

It was Shuichi's turn to be shocked. That sweet little girl was the Queen of Heart's daughter? It had never occurred to him that the girl could be so kind compared to her tyrant mother. Shuichi was starting to realize what he was seeing. What he was seeing was the time before the princess was kidnapped. Did the riddles involve the princess in some way?

The queen knelt down and placed her hand on the princess' shoulder. "My dear, must I always tell you this? Being a future Queen of Hearts means to rule with strict discipline. If the people of Wonderland do not understand this, you have the right to punish them. Most of the people that live here are nothing more than your worst enemy. You will understand when you grow up." She stood back up and followed her husband back into the palace.

The princess stood there with her kitten 'Dinah' before heading to one of the benches near the pond. Once there, she sat down and pet the small thing. Her face didn't show that she was pleased with her mother's words. She sighed.

"Why must my life be like this Dinah?" she asked the kitten, "She's kept telling me all these things all my life and they got worse just after _that time_. Mother says that the people of Wonderland are supposed to be my worst enemy but why? If I treat them with kindness then surely they would be my friends.

"I've seen it with my own eyes Dinah. The people can be very kind if you talk with them properly and talk with them as you wish to be treated yourself. After seeing what Wonderland really is after following my curiosity, if being queen means I have to be a tyrant like my mother and treat these nice people with disrespect then I would never want to be queen. And if I was to become queen, it would to make Wonderland a true wonderland."

Dinah meowed in agreement to the princess' decision. The princess held her little kitten closer and stayed that way until the sunset disappeared and there was nothing more than a dark night sky. Just as the princess figured it was time to get back into the palace, a rustling sound could be heard in one of the trees. Dinah raised her head in alert and ran towards the sound. The princess followed her, calling her name to come back. But Dinah followed the sound until she saw the one responsible and pounced on it. The princess got a good look of the stranger and could not believe her eyes.

"Hatta!" she cried out.

Shuichi stared in amazement to see what looked like 16 year old Yuki dressed in the same clothes as Hatta. No doubt about it, this was Hatta eight years ago. He knew the princess?

Young Hatta stood up and held Dinah gently while petting her, causing her to purr. "You're always on the mark, aren't you Dinah girl?" He put her down only to later stare at the princess. Tears were forming in her eyes.

"Hatta, what are you doing here?" she cried, "You know how my mother despises you and your family, the Mad Hatters. If she catches you, you'll lose your head."

The young Mad Hatter gave her a giant grin that wasn't as big as Kat's. "I've already lost my head!"

"I meant literally!" she yelled and her tears began falling down her cheeks, "I want you to leave!"

The giant grin on the young hatter's face fell. "Do you really want me to leave?"

"You must," said the princess, "You must leave if you are to stay alive. But… But… I'll die if you leave me!" She fell to the ground. "I don't want you to die by my mother's hand but if you ever were to leave me I really would die! I hate this life! I hate it!"

Hatta looked down at the princess, feeling sorry for her. He went down on his knees and held her close to him. "Please don't cry. I will never leave you. I don't care about your mother trying to stop us. She can't stop my love for you Alice."

Shuichi's eyes widened at what Hatta just said. That was the name of the special girl that Hatta deeply loved; the girl who he said Shuichi resembled in so many ways. Never had he thought that that would be the name of the Princess of Wonderland; the one said to be kidnapped and who was believed to be taken by Hatta but was really taken by the White Queen. At least, that was what they were told about the White Queen. And it was then that Shuichi realized it.

He was looking at the Wonderland counterparts of both him and Yuki.

Yuki and Shuichi; Hatta and Alice.

They were both very similar in so many ways but yet very different.

Hatta gently pushed Alice away from him. "I think I have something that might cheer you up. Remember when you said how much you would love to see a white rose?"

Alice shook her head. "You're bringing my hopes up too much Hatta," she replied, "My mother has gotten rid of all white roses in the Country of Hearts. It is rumoured that they might still be growing in Looking Glass Land but that's impossible. Even if there _were_ some there, it would be too dangerous to get one. After all, many would have to brave Jabberwocky, Jubjub Birds, Bandersnatches, and wild wolves; though not as big and strong as the others, their cunning makes them feared by all. It's completely difficult!"

Hatta smirked. "Not difficult for a Mad Hatter." And with a snap of his fingers, a beautiful white rose appeared in his hand. Alice could not believe her eyes as Hatta handed her the flower. She touched every petal and ran her fingers on the stem, seeing if it was real. She stared up at the hatter.

"Hatta, how did you manage to retrieve a white rose?" she asked, "Surely it was impossible. You are mad to go through Looking Glass Land with all its dangers."

"Yes, I'm quite mad!" said Hatta, "I am not a Mad Hatter for nothing. Now, I know that a white rose probably isn't the best gift for someone of your status as you probably would be better with jewellery or something but-!"

Before Hatta could say another word, Alice flung her arms around him and kissed him on the lips. The hatter was confused, but it wasn't long before he kissed her back. Shuichi smiled. This had to be the happiest bit of Hatta's life; being with the one he loved with no worries whatsoever. Not even the Queen of Hearts could destroy his love for this beautiful girl in front of him.

They pulled away and gazed into each other's eyes for what almost felt like eternity. But then Hatta pulled away. "I must go, my princess," he told her, "After all, you said so yourself you didn't want me dead."

Alice was a little disappointed but nodded anyways. Hatta gave a small nod before climbing up the tree and reaching the top of the wall surrounding the palace. The princess looked up at him. "Hatta? One day, we can be together, and my mother would never separate us again." The young hatter tipped his top hat before hopping over the wall, leaving the girl alone with her cat and the beautiful white rose.

Alice walked back to the bench with Dinah following her, admiring the beauty of the white rose. Her eyes danced in wonder of this wonderful flower given to her by the man she deeply loved, gleaming under the light of the moon. She smiled. "Isn't it beautiful Dinah?" she asked the small kitten, "It's the most beautiful flower I have ever seen. And the fact that Hatta got it for me makes it even more beautiful. All my life, my mother would always comment on red roses being the most beautiful; always planting them in the garden and never any other flower. But now I see that she was wrong. All flowers are beautiful. But the white rose would have to be my favourite."

Shuichi could not help but smile brightly at what he was seeing. Alice and Hatta both really loved each other. They couldn't bear to want to be apart from each other. All lovers were like that. It was a natural thing. And Shuichi felt that they were truly a couple that deserved to be with each other, no matter what tries to tear them apart. But did he have this feeling because of the fact that Alice and Hatta were Wonderland counterparts of himself and Yuki?

"Alice, what are you doing?"

Both Shuichi and Alice broke out of their thoughts to see the Queen of Hearts standing there. Alice rapidly stood up and hid the white rose behind her back, knowing full well what would happen if her mother saw it.

"Mother!" Alice cried, "I thought you would've retired for the night already."

"Yes, I was going to," the queen replied, "But for some reason I couldn't help but hear voices in this garden."

The young princess gulped. "You probably just heard me talking to Dinah. You know how I love talking with her sometimes."

The queen didn't seem to believe her daughter. "That may be true if that cat can _speak_ let along have the voice of a young male."

It wasn't sounding good for Alice. Shuichi could tell just by looking at her face that she was scared. "M-Maybe you were imagining things Mother. You've been so busy with ruling the kingdom and having those that were against you off with their heads. Maybe you thought you heard that voice when you heard me talking with Dinah and Dinah alone."

But the queen just kept a glare. "Alice, what is that behind you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," said Alice.

"I know you do," the queen exclaimed, "There is something behind your back."

"No there isn't. Honest!"

It was not helping in Alice's situation. The queen smirked. "All right my dear," she replied, "I believe you. Just one question," She pointed at something far behind Alice. "What is that there?"

Alice turned and looked, only to fall for her mother's trap. The moment she turned, the queen snatched the white rose. The princess gasped as she saw her white rose appear from her hand to her mother's. The latter glared at her daughter; eyes red in absolute fury.

"I knew it!" she snapped, "That Mad Hatter came here, didn't he? _He_ gave you this rose!"

"Mother!" Alice cried, "Please give it back!"

But the older woman would not listen. "He should not only be off with his head now, but to have his head diced into tiny pieces."

"Please stop Mother!" Alice placed her hand on her chest, right where her heart was, staring up at her mother. "Hatta has been nothing but kind to me. In fact, I think he loves me. Even after finding out that I was the next in line for the throne of Wonderland, his opinion of me didn't change."

"My dear, you are too naïve," said the queen, "Mad Hatters have been against our family for generations. And now, there is a possibility that one may be in _love_ with you? Surely he's learned to hate our family just like his despicable ancestors and only pretends to be in love with you because of your current naïve personality. I believe that deep down, he believes that you are the weakest link of our family and plans to kill every one of us; you and me included."

Shuichi knew that was crap. He knew that Hatta deeply loved Alice. He basically said so himself. He knew that the queen was feeding lines to her daughter just to create another tyrant queen. He began to wish that he actually _was_ there instead of simply watching a memory. Alice deserved to be with the one she loved no matter who he was.

"If being the 'weakest link' means I can be myself, then I don't care," said Alice, "I will never become a tyrant queen like you, no matter what happens!"

Alice was in trouble. Knowing the Queen of Hearts' temper, she wouldn't even care to have her own daughter executed. It surprised Shuichi to see the queen smiling. She looked at the white rose she snatched from Alice and chuckled.

"You know Alice," she began, "It seems like I was completely wrong about you. You have courage and you don't let others boss you around. I admire that about you, my daughter. You are exactly like this white rose. Do you know why?"

Alice was confused with what her mother was saying but answered anyway. "Is it because we are both so pure and innocent as well as loyal?"

"No," said the queen. She dropped the rose to the ground and before anyone could react, she slammed her foot onto it, causing the petals to be ripped off and crumpled onto the green grass. "Because the both of you should never exist in _my_ kingdom."

Alice gasped and could not voice anything. Tears welled up in her eyes but could not fall. She only stood, staring at the rose her beloved Hatta gave her and was destroyed by her mother. Shuichi also couldn't move from that. The queen walked over to her daughter and placed her hands onto the slender young shoulders of the princess.

"But my dear Alice," the queen continued, "Hope is not lost. I was almost like you though not as bad. To help me learn how to be a proper queen and how to properly rule Wonderland, my mother made me drink a potion to help me. We will have you drink the potion as well tomorrow and no more will you think these demented thoughts like the people of Wonderland should be treated with kindness or that that Mad Hatter may be 'in love with you'. It's for the best." And so, the queen left and went back inside the palace, leaving Alice alone in her thoughts.

Shuichi watched as the young princess slowly walked over to the destroyed flower. She knelt down and gently picked it up like it was a new born child. The stem was snapped in two, the petals were ripped and were falling off. Alice brought the flower close to her heart and began to cry. Dinah looked up at the princess and gave a sad meow. But Alice was too absorbed in her pain to notice anything else.

As for Shuichi, he felt Alice's pain as if it were his own and walked over to her. He fell down to his knees in front of her and stared at her. It was almost like looking at his own reflection minus the fact that she was female and with long blonde hair. He wanted to do something to comfort her; something, anything. But what could he do? He wasn't really there. This did happen to Alice but in the past. There was nothing he _could_ do.

Slowly, everything in the garden slowly started to fade to black. It faded until only Shuichi and the memories of Alice and Dinah were left, but eventually, even the princess and her beloved cat began to disappear as well.

And soon, Shuichi found himself back in the Cave of Memories.

"Have things become clearer for you?"

This time, Shuichi didn't jump from hearing Kat's voice from behind him. He just sat there as he started crying; Alice's pain still weighing heavy on his heart. He finally got the strength to look up at him, tears falling from his eyes.

"Kat?" he sobbed, "Why did you show me this?"

The cat tsked. "Have you already forgotten? Showing you the Memory of the Hat and the Heart is a hint to the riddles I gave you. By seeing this memory, the riddles must become clear."

Shuichi tried to think on how the riddles and the memory could be connected. But it was no use. He couldn't think of anything. The images of the memory made it hard to see. He stood up and wiped his tears.

"Kat, I can't see the connection," Shuichi explained, "But is it possible to just know one thing about the memory? What happened to Alice after that day? Did she end up having to drink the potion thanks to her mother?"

The cat shook his head. "No," he replied, "The Memory of the Hat and the Heart was the memory of what happened the day before the princess disappeared."

"Was it possible that the White Queen knew all this and that was why she took her?"

"I will not say."

"Did she take Alice as she would serve as a perfect weapon against her mother while she still had her strength as herself and not as another Queen of Hearts?"

"I will not say."

Shuichi scowled. "You could be a little more useful here."

Kat just kept smirking. "Funny. I thought I was."

A groan escaped the pink haired boy's lips. "Listen Kat, even though I don't know the connection between that memory and the riddles you gave me, I'm going to find Hatta and the others and help them save Wonderland." The moment the doors opened, Shuichi stormed out and went in a random direction that he knew wasn't the direction he came from.

Kat watched Shuichi go, but although his grin did not fall, worry did show on his face. "I do not think he knows that he is heading to the Lair of the Jabberwocky," he spoke to himself, "But that does not matter." He then began to rhyme as he slowly disappeared.

He is heading towards the lair,

And get himself in trouble there.

But it will surely not be a long fright,

As he will surely be saved by his White Knight.

**Pinkshuchan: Phew! I thought I would never get this done. I will really try my best to the next chapters up as soon as possible as well as update all my other stories, but let's just hope that my other projects and more Writer's Block don't prevent me from doing so. Please Read and Review!**


	17. Hunger of the Jabberwocky

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hey everyone, it's Pinkshuchan! I'm glad that I was able to break my writer's block so I could get this chapter up. Maybe part of it was the insane boredom I have while waiting for a couple of projects to be done. Last chapter, Shuichi followed Kat into the Cave of Memories where he saw the past between Hatta and his beloved Alice, who turned out to be the missing princess. What will happen now that Shuichi has learned about Alice? Will this show Shuichi the answers to the riddles Kat gave just like he said? Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 17

Hunger of the Jabberwocky

The snow on the ground was cold through black heels and white stockings and yet the air felt like a spring day. Shuichi didn't know whether he was getting closer to Snow White Valley or farther. He wished he knew his way or even met anyone who knew as he continued on. That way he knew for sure that he was on the right track to meeting up with Hatta and the others again and to finally being back home with Yuki and Riku. Even so, despite the fact that Shuichi didn't know his way, he was still determined to find it, even if he had to die trying.

He continued walking, blinded by his determination and his desire; not noticing the area around him darker or that there was no longer snow. No, instead he ended up in a dark cavern filled with rock and skeletons. Slime and blood were dripping off the walls and ceilings. And yet, no matter how far he went, he continued onwards without realizing. It wasn't until he tripped over a skeleton that he had come to his senses and absorbed his surroundings.

"Where am I?" he asked himself, "Did I take a wrong turn?"

A roar ringed in his ears, giving him his answer. He recognized that roar from the train and the Tunnel of Symphony. It was… Oh no! Shuichi was ready to run, knowing the danger he was in, but was stopped when he saw a familiar giant dark grey dragon like monster block his way in.

It was the Jabberwocky.

Shuichi ran for his life and tried to find another way out. He searched everywhere for anything to help him escape. But it was no use. The only way out was from the way he came in. He was trapped.

The Jabberwocky chuckled. "It appears that you are trapped, my little mouse."

The pink haired boy looked up at the monster in fear and shock. "You can talk?"

"Of course I can talk!" he roared, "Almost everything in Wonderland can talk. You would think that you would figure that out with all the talking animals around here."

Although the giant beast was right, it didn't ease Shuichi's fear. "Well, whether you _can_ talk or not, I don't wanna be eaten by you!"

The Jabberwocky tsked as he picked the pink haired boy up. "Poor little mouse, there is nothing wrong with being eaten. Why, lots of animals have to go through it. You humans eat cow, pig, and chicken. Why is it wrong for me to eat you? I'm no different from you. I just eat you, that's all."

"Y-You really can't Mr. Jabberwocky!"

"And why not?"

"I don't taste very good. I haven't showered in a couple of days. I can't even get this stupid dress off. I'm pretty sure I would give you a stomach ache."

But the Jabberwocky only chuckled as he ran his giant snake-like tongue up Shuichi's body. "On the contrary, you taste so delicious, my stomach can't wait to have you inside. But don't worry; it's not going to hurt… much."

Shuichi screamed. Never had he thought that it would end with him being eaten by the monster known as the Jabberwocky. His life was ending quicker than it began. What he wouldn't give just to sing one more song.

Wait a minute! "Um, excuse me? Mr. Jabberwocky?" he tried to get the monster's attention, "Don't you want some entertainment to help relax you before you eat me?"

The Jabberwocky stared at him. "What kind of entertainment?"

"Oh, you know, just some singing. I'm actually a star singer where I come from."

"You're not trying to use this as an escape, are you?"

Shuichi pretended a gasp. "What? After all your wonderful words about how you and I are no different? Never! I promise that the only thing you'll get from me is singing and some dancing until you eat me."

The Jabberwocky put Shuichi down on a cliff, making sure that the pink haired boy would keep his word. "No funny business. You get to sing one last song before I get to eat you."

Shuichi gulped before he began singing. The song was a beautiful tune, almost like a lullaby. Maybe if he got the Jabberwocky to fall asleep, he could then escape. His voice was gentle yet haunting to the song, the perfect thing for a monster to fall asleep to. It was almost his way of calling for help, whether it would be to help the Jabberwocky fall asleep or for anyone to head his way and save him.

And as expected, the Jabberwocky began falling asleep to Shuichi's song. Once it seemed like he was in a deep sleep, the pink haired boy took this as his chance to escape. First thing he had to do was figure out how to get down the tall cliff. He figured the best way would be for him to climb down. He certainly didn't want to jump in the chance that he kills himself. He just hoped that he would be able to reach the bottom and escape before the Jabberwocky wakes up.

He began climbing down. Afraid of falling he moved very slowly. Although that would be good if he was climbing down a cliff with as much time as possible, it wouldn't really be so effective with the limited time he had until the Jabberwocky woke back up. So he moved a little bit faster when climbing down.

In fact, a little _too_ fast. When he tried to grab one of the ledges his hand slipped. He found himself falling down the cliff and landing on the ground. Good thing Shuichi has been known to be able to fall from high up and survive. But the impact of his body to the ground make a small sound that somehow woke the Jabberwocky.

"Hey! What are you doing?!" the Jabberwocky roared. Shuichi took this as a sign to run for his life. He ran as fast as he could to reach the exit of the cave, but the Jabberwocky, who was much bigger than him, was able to take a few steps before he was able to grab the pink haired boy again.

"You shouldn't have done that, my little mouse," he growled, "Now I'm ready to eat you NOW!"

This was it! Shuichi knew for certain that he was going to die. There was no way he could fool the Jabberwocky twice. He was going to be eaten and never would he see the people he loved again.

But that thinking didn't last for long.

The Jabberwocky roared in pain at an impact to his foot. Both he and Shuichi looked in the direction of the impact to see the last person the pink haired boy would think would come to his rescue. Standing there was the White Knight and his horse. Shuichi wasn't sure if he was safe whether it was being saved by the White Knight or eaten by the Jabberwocky.

"Alright you damn beast!" the White Knight yelled, "You are to let him go right now!"

That only caused the beast to laugh. "And what if I don't?"

All the White Knight did was unsheathe his sword and point it at the Jabberwocky. Shuichi expected the Jabberwocky to keep laughing, considering how big it was compared to the White Knight. But the Jabberwocky froze in fear.

"How?" he asked, "How are you in possession of the Vorpal Sword? I have great senses and I can tell that your smell is similar to this little one here. You are both Otherworlders! So how do you have the Vorpal Sword?"

"Does it really matter?" asked the White Knight, "If you do not let him go, I will use this sword to vanquish you!"

"You are a fool!" the Jabberwocky chuckled, "Even if you do have the Vorpal Sword, you have no experience to use it against me. I will eat you along with this little one here!"

And so the battle between the White Knight and the Jabberwocky began. With Shuichi still in his claws, he used his long neck to reach the White Knight and snap his jaws at him. But the White Knight was able to dodge the attack by moving to the side. With the monster snapping and the knight dodging, it seemed like it would be a never ending battle. But when the Jabberwocky tried snapping his jaws one more time, the White Knight held them open and pushed the head back to quickly cut on his arm. The Jabberwocky roared in pain at the cut on his arm. As it was the arm he was holding Shuichi with, the pink haired boy was dropped and fell onto the horse who stood there ready to catch him and began running to a safe spot.

"You shouldn't have done that, Knight!" the Jabberwocky roared at the knight before using his other arm to knock him into the nearest wall. When he and the wall made impact, the White Knight dropped the sword. He was now defenceless against the monster.

Shuichi, who saw it, although he wasn't sure if the White Knight was a friend or foe, he knew he had to help him. "Please, we have to go back and get that sword," he cried to the horse, "We have to help the White Knight." But the horse shook his head. Shuichi remembered the first time they met the White Knight and how he and the horse did not get along. He even remembered what the knight called him.

"Your name is Maximus, right?" Shuichi continued, "I can probably guess that you and the White Knight aren't in good terms. But even so, whether it's him or anyone else, no one should ever have to go through being eaten by the Jabberwocky again." The horse nodded at that. "Well then, will you please help me with this Maximus?"

The horse, Maximus, looked at Shuichi and gave what looked like a determined smirk. He whinnied and turned around before heading back to where the Jabberwocky and the White Knight were. While he ran, Shuichi looked at the ground to see if he could find the sword. When he caught sight of the sparkle from said sword, he told Maximus to try to kick it up to him. Maximus nodded his head and managed to do just that. Shuichi was able to grab the sword and with the horse, they headed straight to the Jabberwocky.

The White Knight, who managed to get himself back together, looked over to see Shuichi riding Maximus and heading to the Jabberwocky. His heart thumped rapidly in fear. "Shuichi, no!" he called out, "You idiot! That thing will kill you!"

But Shuichi didn't listen. He was determined to put an end to the monster once and for all. But the Jabberwocky was one step closer than him. He managed to grab Shuichi and push Maximus to the opposite wall. With the Jabberwocky's tight grip, Shuichi couldn't move his arms, meaning he could use the sword. But as the monster was lying down, ready to put Shuichi in his mouth, the pink haired boy saw White Knight climb a mountain of skeletons to jump onto the Jabberwocky's chest. The best Shuichi could do was try to throw the sword over to the White Knight before being eaten.

He dropped the sword, and luckily the knight caught it. Then, with all the strength he could, he stabbed the Jabberwocky in the heart. He left the sword in and ran as fast as he could to catch Shuichi as the dying monster was about to drop him. He managed to catch him and slid down the monster only to land sitting down with Shuichi in his lap. Shuichi, frightened of the whole thing, had been holding onto the White Knight as tightly as he could. Both panted fast with all the excitement.

They both looked at the monster to make sure it was dead. It wasn't moving, but it could still be alive. Their thoughts were right when they heard a growl. But they found out that it wasn't Jabberwocky, who was surely dead.

It was Shuichi's stomach.

The pink haired boy chuckled. "I guess I'm just really hungry," he replied, "I haven't properly eaten anything for a whole day."

The White Knight didn't look pleased. He smacked Shuichi on the head and put him down while muttering "Idiot," before walking over to Maximus. "Maximus, do you know where there's any food close by?" he asked, "See if you can find anything. If that idiot doesn't eat, this whole thing would be for nothing."

Normally, Maximus wouldn't dare listen to what the White Knight had to say. However, considering that this was more for Shuichi, who was much kinder than the knight, he would do this small task. He left the cave and went to find food.

He returned to the cave with berries and bread with butter. Shuichi was not sure where the horse got the bread with butter from but he didn't care. Shuichi was about to take a bite until he remembered everything that happened every time he ate food from Wonderland and put it down. The White Knight glared at him.

"Why the hell aren't you eating?" he growled, "Maximus got you that food so you can eat."

"I can't eat," Shuichi replied, "Bad things happen when I eat."

The White Knight wasn't sure what the pink haired boy meant until Maximus explained with whinnies and head movements. The knight realized what it was. "Damn, you mean the growing and shrinking spells? That was a giant pain to deal with when that happened to me."

Maximus whinnied in laughter to the White Knight's unintentional pun and got paid for it with a pebble thrown at him, curtesy of the White Knight, only to glare back at him. The knight continued. "Not all the food in Wonderland does that. Only the food which hold a special ingredient in which makes it good for the residents of Wonderland. I'm sure Maximus got the type that doesn't have the special ingredient in it," He glared at the horse. "Right?"

The horse gave a nod that looked like an annoyed yes. Shuichi eyed the bread very closely before taking a bite. The moment he swallowed, he waited to see if anything happened. But nothing did.

"You're right!" he cried with joy, "I'm not growing or shrinking or anything!" He wolfed down the rest of his food in joy and hunger. The White Knight rushed to him.

"Hey, don't gulp it all down like that or you'll start choking you damn idiot!" he snapped.

Shuichi looked at the White Knight in shock. This man, who he believed was after him under orders of the White Queen to make him a prisoner, was treating him kindly in a cold way. It was almost like he was with…!

He looked closely at the White Knight and his eyes widened. When the Jabberwocky knocked him to the wall the first time, a part of his visor helmet moved out of place. Through all the white that Shuichi could see on the knight, whether it was the helmet, the horse mane attached to the helmet, or his own pale skin, he could see some gold strands of hair slightly under the helmet. The knight almost looked hesitant when Shuichi reached out to pull the helmet off, but he began to relax; he knew he would have to show his face before him eventually.

And the moment he took the helmet off, Shuichi sat there wide-eyed and breathless. He couldn't believe the face behind the helmet. _This_ was the face of the White Knight who followed them to take them to the White Queen who was assumed to be evil. So much emotions welled up in Shuichi. Joy, anger, pain. He wasn't sure how to handle it all. There were so many questions he needed to ask, as this was all confusing to him. And all this confusion and emotion was evident in his voice as he said one simple name.

"Yuki."

**Pinkshuchan: DUN DUN DUNNNNNN! Okay, maybe you all knew from the beginning that Yuki was the White Knight. But hey, Shuichi didn't know that. Indeed, there are so many questions he needs to ask like why he is on the side with the White Queen? But that won't be until the next chapter. Read and Review!**


	18. Confusions and Answers

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hey, this is Pinkshuchan! Last chapter, Shuichi encountered the Jabberwocky and was about to become its meal. At least until the White Knight came. Together, they managed to defeat the Jabberwocky. But not long after, Shuichi found out that the White Knight is really… Yuki? Here's the chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 18

Confusions and Answers

"Yuki?" It was difficult to talk. He couldn't understand it. Yuki was the White Knight the entire time? Wasn't the White Knight supposed to be the enemy? He served the White Queen, right? Why did he have to be Yuki? It was just too much.

Yuki grabbed Shuichi's shoulders. "Shuichi, you need to listen to me," he spoke up, "I came here to take you home. We can leave this place thanks to the White Queen."

But Shuichi stepped back. "No, you can't be Yuki. Yuki would never side with the enemy!"

The golden haired male crossed his arms. "Your favourite food is Strawberry Pocky, your favourite band is Nittle Grasper, you are a big fan of Ryuichi Sakuma who I hate, and it may not look like it but you wear mascara and strawberry lip gloss to give you more of a feminine look as you assume it will make you more nicer looking. Should I go on with more detail, like all your secrets in the bedroom?"

The pink haired boy just stared agape. "You are Yuki. But why?"

"I believe my question is why you assume the White Queen is the enemy?"

"She kidnapped people. She kidnapped Princess Alice and the Mad Tea Party-"

"The Mad Tea Party was taken by the Red Queen's soldiers pretending to be White Queen's soldiers before saved by the White Queen herself. I would know because I was a part of the rescue party. I haven't heard anything about any princess though."

"She wanted Hatta! No doubt to use him to defeat the Queen of Hearts and ruin Wonderland even more than it already is."

"First part is true. The White Queen wanted Hatta, but for much more than just that. Ruining this place however isn't one of them."

Shuichi just stared at Yuki in confusion. "I don't understand."

Yuki sighed. "You never seem to surprise me with how much of an idiot you are. Have you seen the White Queen? Have you seen her do anything evil?"

Shuichi began to think. "I saw her during the Knave of Hearts' trial. She saved his life. She didn't look evil when I saw her. It seemed like she and the Queen of Hearts didn't really get along."

"Of course not," Yuki explained, "The White Queen wishes to throw the Red Queen off her throne, yes. But not for greed. She told me all her reasons to this. I agreed to help in the condition that she would help me find you and get us back home. She made into a white knight, serving as your protector and guide. Complete nonsense!"

A smile crossed Shuichi's face. He liked that thought, like as if the White Queen knew what he would've liked to see with Yuki. Seeing him as his own personal white knight, protecting him and guiding him through… Wait! Kat's riddle!

"We all yearn for love; it's all we dream of. It's not a black day that will help you find your way," Shuichi whispered, repeating the riddle, "Not a black day to guide me, a _white knight_!" He ran up to golden haired man. "Yuki! Tell me! Why does the White Queen want to overthrow the Queen of Hearts?"

"The Red Queen is considered a tyrant ruler here," Yuki replied, "The only ones who had the confidence to stand up to her were the Mad Hatter and the Mad Tea Party. But alone, they can't win against her. The White Queen, considered to be the true Queen of Hearts, plans to overthrow the Red Queen so there is peace."

And confusion hit Shuichi like a brick again. "But how can the White Queen be the true Queen of Hearts? She would have to be-!" He didn't need to finish the sentence. He had already found the answer. It was everything Kat did. The riddles, the memory, they all pointed to this. Shuichi already figured out the second riddle was Yuki who was to help him figure things out. The first riddle was the White Queen's motive; overthrowing the Red Queen and her tyranny and bringing peace to Wonderland. The memory… It all made sense now. The White Queen wasn't their enemy at all. He would have to tell Hatta…!

Hatta! Shuichi had completely forgotten. Hatta was on his way to eliminate the White Queen. He doesn't know what's really going on! He could already be at the castle! He had to hurry. He was about to run out of the cave when Yuki grabbed his arm.

"Shuichi, where the hell are you going?" he yelled.

The pink haired boy looked up at him with worry. "Yuki! We need to get to Looking Glass Castle right away! The White Queen's in danger!"

"She can take care of herself. Right now, we need to get back home."

"But Yuki, I figured everything out. Hatta is going to try to kill her, and if she is who I think she is, she won't fight him. She may let him kill her if we don't do something."

"It doesn't concern us!"

Shuichi couldn't believe what he was hearing. He glared at the golden haired man, but not in his cute glare. This glare was dark, similar to the glare he had seen Shuichi give against Taki Aizawa. "You said that you made an agreement with her to help her against the Red Queen in return for her to help her find me and give us a way home. Now that you've found me, you're just gonna let her fend for herself. This is low, even for you."

"Even if I did try to help her, what can I do? You guys kept running when I was around. I doubt listening to me will get that Mad Hatter to change his mind."

He saw Shuichi grab Maximus' reins and handed them to Yuki. "Maybe, but you know the way to the castle right? I can try to reason with Hatta if I get there before he succeeds in killing her. Please Yuki!"

Silence surrounded them as they had a staring contest; Shuichi determined to save the White Queen and Hatta, and Yuki determined to get Shuichi and himself back home safe. Maximus also joined in the staring and supported Shuichi not because he didn't like Yuki, but because he didn't want to see the White Queen dead. This went on for a full two minutes before Yuki gave a sigh. "Get on the horse and we'll hurry to the castle. The way back home is there anyways and I don't think we'll get a chance to get back if that crazy queen in white gets defeated."

Shuichi smiled and gave Yuki a peck on the cheek before climbing onto Maximus, the golden haired male following shortly after. He told Maximus to get moving and the horse complied without complaint or any trouble on Yuki's part. They rode through the snow and on their way to Looking Glass Castle. Shuichi just hoped that he wasn't too late.

**Pinkshuchan: It's a short chapter, I know. But the next chapter should be longer. I will get onto the next chapter as soon as possible. Read and Review!**


	19. Melancholy

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hello everyone! It's Pinkshuchan! Last chapter, Shuichi learned everything behind Kat's riddles just by talking to Yuki. Upon realizing, Shuichi began heading to Looking Glass Castle with Yuki's help to stop Hatta from attempting to kill the White Queen. Will they get there in time? Who is the White Queen to be so important to keep alive? Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 19

Melancholy

Snow White Valley; a long field of clear white snow that would appear endless among the blizzard and the fog. But thanks to the giant white cat, the remaining members of the Mad Tea Party were able to make their way through to Looking Glass Castle. With every step, Hatta's anger grew. He was determined to make the White Queen pay for everything she's done. For Shuichi, for the Mad Tea Party, and more importantly for the princess. He was going to avenge them.

The doors into the castle opened and they walked in. Amazing how the entire castle was also white. Jack walked up to them and lent them some towels to dry themselves off. Haigha and Dormouse were about to accept them when Hatta stopped them.

"Where is the White Queen?" he snapped at Jack.

The knave glared back. "Her Majesty is preparing herself as she has been expecting you for a long time, Mr. Hatter. Please be patient and dry yourselves off before you catch cold from the valley."

Hatta would not listen. He was sure that the White Queen was his enemy. No doubt the towels had something that would turn them into the White Queen's servants. He was not going to fall, no matter what. He was determined for vengeance and freedom.

"I knew you would come. I've been waiting for you."

Hatta looked over to the stairs to see a beautiful woman in partial white armour and a mask covering the lower half of her face. He held his guard but didn't bring out his weapon yet. He didn't want her to suspect what he was planning.

"Are you the White Queen?" he asked.

"That has been my name for the past eight years, yes," the woman replied, "But soon, I will be referred to as the Queen of Hearts, the true queen of Wonderland. You know me by another name though."

Hatta was not sure what she was talking about by him 'knowing her by another name' but decided not to put much thought into it. She held her hand out to him. Possibly to shake hands as a greeting. This was perfect in Hatta's case. By pretending to shake her hand, it would be his chance to kill her right then when she isn't paying attention. He walked over to her and was about to start his plan when out of the blue, she pulled her hand away and started to scream.

The sight was shocking. The White Queen fell to her knees as she screamed; her eyes glowing a light blue. Jack ran over to her in fear, calling her out. But she wouldn't stop screaming.

"No! No!" she screamed, "Why?! Why would you want to kill me?! Why?!"

Hatta was shocked. Could she know? It wasn't long before she snapped out of it and her eyes returned to their usual violet. She stood up and looked at Hatta; her eyes filled with grief and sadness.

"You came here only to kill me," she said softly, "What did I do to want you to do this?"

He figured it was pointless to hide it anymore so he pulled out his hidden daggers and stood a fighting stance. "You know the reason why."

The White Queen lowered her head. "I thought that you would forgive me. I had no choice. I thought you would understand."

"Understand what? What the hell do you mean by 'forgiving you'? This isn't something you can easily forgive."

"I'm sorry, but," she pulled out her sword, "I cannot fall! Wonderland needs me! Forgive me Hatta! I wish not to fight you, but as the true queen of Wonderland I must keep standing."

The fight began. Hatta charged up to the White Queen and tried to strike with his daggers. But the White Queen used her sword to block the attacks. Yet she never went for a counter attack, even when the Mad Hatter had his guard down. This confused the latter, but it did not suspend his determination to defeat her.

The battle ended up leading Hatta and the White Queen on a bridge in the castle. They were quite high up and the storm from Snow White Valley made it hard to properly see anything. A bit of snow got in the White Queen's eye, and just as she lowered her guard to try to get it out, Hatta landed another attack which knocked her sword out of her hands and off the bridge. Hatta had won.

The White Queen went down to her knees in defeat. "You have defeated me," she replied, "I cannot fight you. I surrender."

"Wise choice White Queen," Hatta responded, "But my taste of victory will not be satisfactory unless I take your life."

She lowered her head. "If that is the case; if you really hate my prescience in Wonderland that much, then do what you need to." A tear ran down her cheek. "My life is yours to do as you see fit."

Hatta walked closer to the White Queen, savouring every step. This was it! He was going to get his revenge for everything the White Queen had done. When he was close enough, he raised his left arm with one of the daggers in it. The moment he strikes, he truly wins. He took a bit to look at the White Queen; so weak on her knees. But something didn't feel right. For some reason, a part of him didn't want to kill her. Why? He knew he had to be quick with killing her before changing his mind. He lowered his arm swiftly, ready to strike.

But instead of feeling blood on him and hearing the White Queen's last breath, he heard metal clash into metal and a force pulling him back.

He moved back from the force and was in complete shock to see Shuichi standing in front of the White Queen, holding what appeared to be the Vorpal Sword. "Hatta, you can't kill her!"

The White Queen looked up at Shuichi in the same shock as Hatta. This didn't last though, for her shock transferred from on Shuichi to a familiar face. It was the White Knight or should we say Yuki. "White Knight! You made it! And you have found the one you've been looking for. I'm glad."

"Stand down Hatta," Shuichi continued, "The White Queen is not the enemy."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Hatta snapped back, "You were there when the Tweedle Brothers gave that information."

"Well they lied! I know the truth. They were all in the riddles Kat gave me. The White Queen is not trying to make Wonderland worse; she's trying to return it to the way it was before the Red Queens took over. She's the White Queen your ancestor believed would come to save everyone."

The Mad Hatter couldn't believe it. "That can't be true. Card soldiers with white masks took the members of the Mad Tea Party. Those card soldiers belong to the White Queen."

"What are you talking about? I didn't take anyone," All eyes were on the White Queen, "The Red Queen dressed her card soldiers that way to make you assume I took them. They took the Mad Tea Party. But I rescued them. You can even ask them yourself and you can try any test to make sure they aren't hypnotized or anything."

"Then what about the Princess of Wonderland," Hatta continued, "It was said that you took her; that you were the reason for my eight years of suffering. I was trapped in hell because of you! You took everything away from me; my freedom… my…" He couldn't continue. Shuichi looked up at him in pity and was about to say something. But before he could make a sound…

"You're right," the White Queen replied, "It is true Hatta that I took all that away because of my actions. All I thought about was myself and what I wanted; I never thought that things would've ended up this way; how it made your life miserable. For that, I am sorry. All I thought about was escaping a horrible future planned out to me by my mother."

Hatta looked at her in confusement. "Your mother?"

"My mother ruined many lives, but ruined mine the most. She didn't seem to truly love me; if she did she would understand how I would want to live my own life. All she wanted was to have another tyrant ruler take over."

This was not helping. It was only making the Mad Hatter even more confused. "I don't understand. Tyrant ruler? The only tyrant I know is…! And the only successor I knew was…!"

The White Queen took off her mask. By taking off her mask, things made more understanding. Shuichi and Yuki were not shocked by her face; Shuichi because he knew and Yuki because he didn't care. But Hatta was paralysed in shock. Never did it ever occur to him who the White Queen would truly be.

"Alice?"

Alice gave Hatta a melancholy smile. "I'm sorry to have caused you so much trouble Hatta. Please stay and rest for a bit before you go should you want to leave." Without another word, she walked away and off the bridge. Hatta held out a hand to try to stop her, but pulled back at his own realization. He sighed before going the other direction.

Shuichi ran in front of him. "Wait, aren't you going to stop her?"

"I can't," said Hatta, "Did you not see the look on her face? It was a look that wanted to be alone. Besides, I've already hurt her enough." He continued walking past Shuichi and off the bridge. The pink haired boy didn't want to give up though. Two lovers were finally reunited. They needed to be together. He was going to follow Alice himself when an arm stopped him.

"That's not a good idea Shuichi," Yuki told him, "It appears they both want to be alone. They went through a lot not that long ago. They should have time to themselves to think things over. Your idiocy would most likely make things worse."

Shuichi would've replied back to it, but he could tell that Yuki was serious. It was not a good idea to reply back to that. He lowered his head and followed Yuki to where they too will get some rest. He just hoped that Hatta and Alice would make up with each other soon.

**Pinkshuchan: This chapter was quite depressing, huh? There will be more soon. Won't be long until this story is done though. Read and Review!**


	20. Curiosity is Not Always a Bad Thing

**Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! Hey, it's Pinkshuchan! Sorry for not uploading any of my Gravitation fanfics for a while. I got myself too inspired to write my current Junjou Romantica fanfic. I haven't forgotten my Gravitation fanfics though; I just didn't feel inspired enough. However, I have finally got my ass into gear and have started continuing on Shuichi in Wonderland. Enjoy!**

Chapter 20

Curiosity is Not Always a Bad Thing

Sitting in the room that he and Yuki were given to sleep in, Shuichi was too depressed to let slumber take over him. He couldn't stop thinking about Hatta and Alice and how upset they both were. He wanted to see them make up. But how?

He sighed. Knowing that sleep just won't help him, he slipped out of his room without trying to wake Yuki, even though it was hard to wake the golden haired man up, and decided to take a walk around the castle. Even in the dark, the castle was a bright white with some blues to make it stand out a bit. The only other people around at this time were the card knights with white masks but they didn't bother with questioning Shuichi or wonder why he was out at this time.

It was after walking around for a bit that he noticed a giant white cat looking at him with big blue eyes. He recognized it as the cat that Alice rode when she saved Jack. Shuichi had a theory, remembering about how nothing in Wonderland makes any sense so this could be possible.

"Sorry if I get this wrong," he started, "But is it possible that you are Dinah?"

The cat nodded before walking away, but not before gesturing Shuichi to follow her. The pink haired male began following her until they reached a greenhouse filled with white roses. Among the white roses stood Alice, watching them with a melancholy look planted on her face. So she must be distressed from the incident that happened between her and Hatta. Shuichi figured it would be best to talk to her.

When Shuichi walked over to her, Alice looked at him and gave him a sad smile. He could never get over the fact her face was the exact same as his face; that she was his Wonderland counterpart. It was hard looking at her without remembering that he wasn't looking in a mirror.

She began talking about how she felt seeing Hatta again when they sat down at a bench, only to find out the Mad Hatter had tried to kill her. Shuichi tried to explain that Hatta only did that as he was deceived, for he thought that Alice herself was taken by the White Queen without knowing that the White Queen was Alice herself. She appeared to understand but still felt bad about it.

"But it makes me glad that you were here," she continued, "If you hadn't have stopped him, none of us would've known the truth; Hatta wouldn't have known it was a lie and I would've believed that he tried to kill me because he actually hated me. I see now that it was all a misunderstanding; all thanks to you."

Shuichi lowered his head. "I shouldn't be thanked," he replied softly, "Part of everything that had happened may have never happened if I never came here to Wonderland. I wouldn't be here if not for my damn curiosity. Because of it, Yuki and I had almost gotten ourselves killed thousands of times. If I hadn't of followed the white rabbit…"

But Alice shook her head. "You couldn't contain your curiosity. It's natural, especially for the both of us who have to know what's going on. I don't think that curiosity is always a bad thing. Sure, there may be lots of people that get killed from it, but if you had to decide to take a risk and almost if not completely get yourself killed or to continue on life without checking it and regret it, which sounds like the most reasonable answer?"

"The answer where you don't die sounds good."

The White Queen glared at him. "But then you would be haunted with that regret for the rest of your life. Who knows, it could've been something that could've saved you or someone else. That's what I always think. If I had never taken a chance and explore what the real Wonderland was compared to what my mother always said it was, I probably would've never seen the truth and I would've become just like my mother instead of being here, fighting for what I believe in. And what about you? Overall, was following the White Rabbit really a bad thing? Would you be willing to give all this up; the chance to meet everyone here, to have an adventure like what you had just experienced, to see your lover as a literal White Knight in shining armour?"

Shuichi chuckled. "I actually didn't think of it that way," he exclaimed honestly, "Throughout this entire journey, all I had been thinking about is how I was going to go home and leaving this place. But now that I think about everything that had happened, it turned out to be interesting. I made lots of friends here; Hatta, Haigha, Dormouse, Jack, Kat, Caterpillar, and you. And Yuki as a White Knight? It was like my dreams come true. Maybe this entire time in Wonderland really wasn't all that bad. It doesn't mean I don't want to get home as soon as possible."

Alice nodded. "I understand. Once the sun rises, I will have Mr. Rabbit open the Looking Glass to return you and your 'White Knight' home. But first, you should get some sleep. It is late."

"But what about you?" Shuichi asked as they both stood up.

"I'm going to talk with Hatta. Maybe the awkwardness between us will leave once we start interacting with each other again. I-!"

Before she could continue, her eyes began to glow. Shuichi was not sure what was going on. Once her eyes stopped glowing, Alice gasped with her face showing worry.

"Alice?" Shuichi tried to get her attention, "Are you okay?"

Said girl looked at him and smiled. "Oh yeah, I'm fine. You just get some rest."

Shuichi was not sure if he really could believe her. It had to be something really bad if she wouldn't say anything. Would she tell him if he pressed the issue? He was not sure. Even though she was supposed to be his Wonderland counterpart, there were things about her he couldn't figure out. His curiosity was getting the better of him. He asked again.

"I'll tell you when the sun rises," was all she said before going her own way. There was nothing left to do except return to his room.

When he got there, Yuki was sitting up on the bed, staring at a familiar object. Shuichi smiled as he recognized it. "You still have that even after two years of being together?" he asked, "I never thought you would keep it. It must not work anymore."

Yuki looked up at the pink haired male before looking back down at it. "I have considered throwing this old lighter away," he replied coldly, "I just hadn't bothered to do so."

Shuichi just smiled before sitting beside Yuki on the bed. "It's not just any ordinary lighter," he continued, "It's the lighter with the picture of our first date on it. Almost feels like yesterday when you took me there and we got that picture taken," He rested his head on the blond's shoulder. "You were so nice to me back then."

"Yeah, I guess."

"Yuki?" Shuichi looked up at him with his head still on the taller man's shoulder, "I'm worried."

"Is it about the little brat?"

"Thanks for bringing that up but no," the pink haired male replied sarcastically before being serious, "Something happened with Alice when I was talking with her. Her eyes glowed and she gave some sort of worried expression once they stopped."

Yuki kept his monotonous expression but his eyes began to also give some sort of distressed expression. "That meant she just now saw the near future. That's how she knew of things before it was too late. They come up at random times though so it isn't completely accurate when knowing when she'll get them and when the visions are to take place; a natural case for many who have that gift in many fictional cases."

"But Yuki, Alice and the rest of Wonderland aren't in this case. It could be something bad. I just don't understand why she wouldn't tell me."

"You only just met, idiot! Even if you are counterparts of each other. If she doesn't tell you now, she'll most likely explain later," He went back to laying on the bed. "I'm tired. I'm going back to sleep."

"Yuki!" Shuichi cried but in vain. The older male had already fallen asleep. The pink haired male sighed before he also went to sleep.

As for Alice, she went through the entire castle until she finally found Hatta at the balcony. The hatter was surprised at first but it quickly went away when the White Queen walked over to him and held onto him. He too began to hold her back.

"Hatta," she began, "I'm sorry about everything that happened; I-!"

The Mad Hatter only shook his head. "No, Alice. It's no one's fault."

It didn't change the expression on her face. "Hatta. I'm sorry to ask this of you so suddenly. This is probably a bad time but considering what had happened, I need to ask you this. I need us to fight together. As soon as possible. I will lead my card soldiers and you will lead the Mad Tea Party. And we need to get Shuichi and Yuki out of Wonderland as soon as possible too."

"Why the rush? We're finally together again!"

"Because my mother is heading here."

**Pinkshuchan: Surprise after surprise, huh? Sorry about another short chapter. But not to worry! Next chapter will definitely be longer. Read and Review!**


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